What We Owe to Each Other
by hntret12
Summary: When Meredith's world collapses, who will be there to pick up the pieces?
1. Chapter 1

If you could go back and change a split second of your life, would you?

"We've got a trauma coming in Dr. Webber, 2 victims in a head on collision. The driver of the car that crossed over the line was pronounced dead on the scene. The driver of the other car is 40-year-old women with multiple crush injuries and head trauma. Her daughter the passenger is 16 years old with a possible head and shoulder injury," a paramedic yelled as he entered the ER at Seattle Grace Hospital.

"Alright, let's get the mom into trauma room one and the daughter into trauma room two," Dr. Webber yelled as he followed the mom into room one knowing she was in much worse shape than her daughter.

The women had multiple visible injuries to her face and body and Dr. Webber knew that there wasn't much they could do for her. She began to code as soon as he entered the room and he tried to restart her heart but after a few minutes it was clear she was not going to make it.

"Time of death, 1:40am," Dr. Webber said as he left trauma room 1 to go check on how the daughter was doing. Knowing he was going to have to be the one to inform this girl her mother had just died he took a deep breath and prepared himself to face the girl.

As soon as Dr. Webber entered the room his heart dropped because he knew who the teenager was sitting in front of him and that meant that he had just pronounced one of his closest friend's dead. Sitting in front of him was Meredith Grey, daughter of Ellis Grey. Richard Webber and Ellis Grey were collages and had worked together for many years at the hospital. She was one of the most respected surgeons there was and now she would never be able to save another patient ever again. Richard knew he had to hold back his emotions for the moment, so he could make sure Meredith was doing alright.

"Hi Meredith, I am Dr. Webber, we have met a few times, I work with your mom," Richard said as he took Meredith's chart from the nurse.

"I remember meeting you, how is my mom doing?" Meredith asked as Richard set the chart down.

"Meredith, your mom was hurt pretty badly when that car hit you guys and unfortunately the injuries were too much for her body. I am so very sorry, but she died," Richard sighed and braced himself for what was to come. He was surprised when Meredith just shook her head but didn't say anything else or show very many emotions. Not wanting to press the girl any further he started to tell her about her injuries. Saying she had a concussion and a dislocated shoulder and that they wanted to keep her overnight for observation.

"Meredith, do you have any other family that I can call to come stay with you," Richard asked hoping he wouldn't upset the girl any further. He knew Ellis was divorced from Meredith's dad Thatcher but wasn't sure of any other living relatives.

"No, my dad left before I was born, and I never met him, and I don't have any other relatives," Meredith said as she closed her eyes wanting this day to just end.

"Alright, they are going to take up upstairs to the pediatric unit and I will come check on you in a little bit," Richard said to the girl as they wheeled her away.

Richard and Ellis were collages and nothing else. They talked at work usually about patients or cases, but Richard knew that Thatcher had left Ellis before Meredith was born and wasn't even sure that he knew he had a daughter. However, Ellis had told him that Thatcher had met a woman shortly after he left Ellis and had a kid named Lexi with her who was similar in age to Meredith. Richard knew it was a touchy subject for Ellis, so he never pushed her for more detail. However, he also knew that if he couldn't find a relative of Meredith's then she would be place in foster care and that was something he wanted to avoid. Knowing this Richard sent an intern downstairs to the medical files to get a phone number that he needed.

Richard had just finished checking on Meredith when his intern arrived with the file he was looking for. Meredith had been asleep when he checked on her but was doing well. He was a bit worried that she hadn't cried at all learning of her mother's death but also knew that shock could mess with people's emotions and also knew that the mother and daughter had a very complicated relationship. He opened the file which contained emergency contact numbers for the doctors and was relieved when he saw that Thatcher was still listed as Ellis's contact. He dialed the number and prepared himself for a conversation that would change many lives.


	2. Chapter 2

Meredith awoke in a dark room and immediately began to remember the events that had unfolded that day. She had gone to school like any other day and, but her mom had texted her letting her know she would be picking her up at the end of the day. Meredith knew this must have meant her mom was off work because that was the only way she would ever had come to get her. Ever since Meredith could remember her mom had put more effort into her work than she did with her own daughter and a part of Meredith was always resentful for this. Meredith left school when her final class got out and walked outside to find her mother parked and waiting for her. They had to make a few stops on the way home and they had just left the grocery store and were headed home when the accident happened. It all happened so fast and the next thing Meredith knew she was sitting in the hospital her mom worked at being told by Dr. Webber that her mom was dead.

Meredith remembered feeling too many different emotions and not wanting to let herself fall apart in front of strangers she pulled them all in and focused on the questions being asked of her. She remembers telling Dr. Webber that she had no living relatives and that she didn't know who or where her dad was. She had asked her mom many times about her dad but never got more than a one-word answer from her. The day's events were catching up to her once again and she closed her eyes hoping that maybe this would all be a dream.

Richard had just gotten off the phone with Thatcher who was on his way to the hospital. Richard didn't get into too much detail with Thatcher on the phone because he felt that this was a conversation that would be better had in person but told him that Ellis had died and needed him to come into the hospital. Thatcher told Richard he would be there as soon as he could as he only lived 40 minutes away. Richard went back to check on a few of his patients and soon saw Thatcher being escorted by a nurse to an empty room. Knowing this conversation needed to happen sooner than later, Richard took a deep breath and entered the room.

"Thatcher, we spoke on the phone, my name is Richard Webber and I worked with your ex-wife Ellis. I am very sorry to have had to be the one to deliver the news to you," Richard said as he sat across from the man.

"Ellis and I haven't talked in 16 years but I was still very sorry to hear that she had passed. I guess I am a little confused as to why I was called here in person. You said something about me still being her emergency contact," Thatcher said as he rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache coming on.

"Yes, I apologize about that, our contact information has not been updated in quite some time. However, the real reason I called you in was because Ellis was not the only person in the car at the time of the accident. You see she was with a 16-year-old girl named Meredith and the reason I asked you to come in is because I believe her to be your daughter." Richard held his breath as he said this, not sure what Thatcher's reaction would be.

"Daughter, Ellis never told me she was pregnant. Is the girl okay?" Thatcher asked suddenly concerned for this stranger's well-being.

"I wasn't sure if you knew about Meredith or not, so I am once again sorry I had to be the one to break the news to you. Meredith was very lucky and came out of the accident with a small concussion and a dislocated shoulder. However, she told me that she had no other living relatives besides you meaning that I would have to call child protective services since she is still a minor, unless someone could take her in," Richard explained.

"Someone, as in me? Up until a few minutes ago I thought I just had one daughter and now you are telling me that I have another daughter who just lost her mom. This is a lot to take in." Thatcher said as he felt his headache begin to increase with this new news.

"I know this must be a lot to process and I can't even imagine how you feel right now but all I know is that there is a 16-year-old girl in there who will be put in the foster care system unless you intervene. I have never had kids, so I am probably not the right person to tell you what to do but that girl is scared and alone and I think what she needs right now is her dad to help her out," Richard pleaded.

"Can I see her? Does she know that I was called here?" Thatcher asked.

"Yes, you can see her and no she doesn't know that I called you, but I will go in with you and explain the situation," Richard said as Thatcher nodded and both men got up and went into the hallway.

Richard led Thatcher down the hallway to Meredith's room. They entered the dimly lit room and saw that the girl was sleeping. Not wanting to wake her they stepped back into the hall.

"We can do a blood test to make sure she is your daughter if that would help you make a decision," Richard said.

Thatcher shook his head immediately, "As soon as I saw her, I knew she was my daughter. Is there any way you could sit with her for a few minutes while I make a phone call to my wife? I don't want her to be alone in case she wakes up," Thatcher said as he reached into his pocket to get his cellphone out. Richard nodded and walked back into Meredith's room to sit next to the girl's bed. Thatcher finished his call with his wife Susan who said she would come meet him at the hospital as soon as she dropped Lexi over at her friend's house. He went back into the room and found Richard talking with Meredith. Richard had just finished explaining that he was able to track down her father and get a hold of him.

Meredith looked up at Thatcher as soon as he entered the room and knew immediately that he was her father. She had seen a picture of him with her mom once when they were much younger, but the resemblance was there. Thatcher immediately came over to the side of the bed and began to apologize to the young girl. "Meredith I just want to say how sorry I am about your mom and if I had known about you, I would have been around to help take care of you," Thatcher said as he sat down next to the girl and thanked Richard before he left the room to get back to the ER.

Meredith shook her head as she heard this, "It's okay, my mom should have told you about me but now it's too late for that," Meredith said as she began to cry. She was finally beginning to realize that her mom was really gone for good and even though they didn't have the best relationship it was still her mom. Thatcher reached over and grabbed her hand as the girl continued to cry until she had cried herself to sleep.

Susan showed up to the hospital about an hour after Meredith had fallen asleep and was escorted up to her room by an aid. Thatcher saw his wife and immediately met her in the hallway not wanting to wake the girl up.

"Susan, I promise you I didn't know about Meredith otherwise I would have been there for her," he said almost in tears.

"Honey, I know you would have if you knew about her. How is she doing?" Susan was genuinely concerned about the young girl and wanted to make sure she was okay.

"Physically she is fine besides a dislocated shoulder and a small concussion but emotionally she is not okay at all. I know that this is a lot to take in, but I have to step up and take responsibility for her. She has no one else in her life now and she needs a home and a family," Thatcher said hoping his wife would understand.

"I would expect nothing less from you and I agree that she is going to need people around her while she deals with the trauma that has happened to her. Things are not going to be easy, but we will figure them out and Lexi always wanted another sibling," Susan said as she smiled thinking of their daughter.

"Thank you for being so understanding," Thatcher kissed his wife as both of them entered the room to sit by the girl's side. They both knew that they had to be there for Meredith and help her get through whatever would come up.


	3. Chapter 3

Meredith was in the car with Thatcher and Susan on her way back to their home. She had met Susan briefly when she had woken up and instantly felt comforted by her. She couldn't explain it, but she felt like that is what a mother should feel like. They had told Meredith that they had a daughter named Lexi who was around the same age as Meredith. Susan had called Lexi a few hours ago to explain the situation. She didn't want to ambush her daughter and wanted to make sure she was okay with not being the only child any more. Lexi had sounded excited to meet Meredith on the phone and Susan knew this was because Lexi had always wanted another sibling. Susan also explained to Lexi that Meredith had just lost her mother and was probably traumatized. She didn't want Lexi to say something that might upset Meredith even more. Susan looked in the review mirror of the car and noticed that Meredith was just staring blankly out the window not saying a word the whole car ride.

Thatcher and Susan had sat down with a therapist who had talked to Meredith briefly and were informed that Meredith like had PTSD and might be closed off for quite some time. They were told to not force Meredith to talk about what happened and let her come to them if she wanted to talk about it. They were also given a referral of a therapist near their house who dealt with children and teenagers who were experiencing grief and PTSD. They were going to call when they got home to set up a weekly appointment for Meredith. They also had to get her transferred into the high school Lexi attended but agreed that she needed a few weeks off from school to deal with everything she had been through. Meredith's mother had stated in her will that she wanted to be cremated and did not want a funeral. Thatcher and Susan figured the family could have a small ceremony in the next week or so at their house, so Meredith could properly say goodbye to her mother. Since they hadn't had time to get the guest room set up for Meredith yet they figured she could sleep in Lexi's room for a few nights while they cleared out the stuff that had been stored in the extra room.

They pulled into the driveway and Thatcher opened Meredith's door, so she could get out. He helped her grab her bag they had gotten from her house with some of her clothes and person items. They figured they could go back in a few days to get the rest of Meredith's stuff. Her arm was in a sling since her shoulder was dislocated so for the time being, she would need some help from the family. Lexi had gotten dropped off from her friend and was waiting inside when she saw her parents pull into the driveway. Wanting to give Meredith some space she waited inside the house for her parents to come in with the girl.

Lexi knew something was wrong last night when her dad had gotten a call and suddenly rushed off. All her mom told her was that a family member needed some help. Lexi had then gone over to her friend's house and later got a call from her mom explaining the situation that was happening. At first, she was shocked because she had no idea her dad had another daughter but after her mom explained that he didn't know about her she understood. She was excited when she learned the girl was around the same age and was going to be living with them. She had always wanted a brother or sister and liked the idea of having someone her age in the house. When her mom explained that the girl had just survived a car accident that killed her mom, she instantly felt bad for feeling excited while this girl was only feeling pain. Her mom had explained to her that Meredith would be fragile and would be struggling with losing her mom and the trauma she had been through. She had also been told not to push the girl too far and to avoid talking about her mom or things that might make her sad. Lexi was pulled out of her thoughts as she heard the door open.

Thatcher and Susan walked in carrying Meredith's stuff followed by the girl who shyly looked around the place that would be her new home. She noticed a girl around her age standing near the door and figured this must be their daughter Lexi she had been told about. Lexi gave her a small smile and she instantly felt herself calm a little.

"Meredith, this is our daughter Lexi," Thatcher said as he carried Meredith's bag inside. Lexi said hello to the girl and Meredith just gave a slight smile back.

"Lexi why don't you take Meredith upstairs and show her your room where she will be staying for a few days. Your mom and I are going to get some food out and then we can eat lunch soon. It was a Saturday, so Lexi had school off and Thatcher didn't have work today. He was an architect and spent half his time in an office and the other half working from home. He made enough money to support his family so Susan only worked part-time at a bakery in their small town. She had decided that her and Thatcher would make sure at least one of them was home with Meredith at all times since she was in a new place. They also knew she would need help with tasks because of her shoulder and thought the girl might get lonely by herself.

Lexi shook her head and Meredith followed her up the stairs to the bedroom. Thatcher and Susan went to the kitchen and began pulling out supplies to make sandwiches for lunch. They figured Meredith wouldn't have much of an appetite but also knew she needed to eat something. Dr. Webber had explained that the pain meds Meredith was given for her shoulder shouldn't be taken on an empty stomach but that with everything she went through she probably wouldn't want to eat much.

Upstairs Lexi had just finished showing Meredith the bathroom and the closet where all the towels were. She took her to her bedroom and let the girl look around the room. Meredith still hadn't said anything to her and she didn't want to push remembering what her mom had told her so she just let the girl look around. She noticed that Meredith had been looking at a picture of Lexi with her old dog she had as a little girl that had passed away a few years ago.

"Did you ever have a dog?" Lexi asked Meredith and was met with a head nod from the girl. Meredith continued to look around the room and then both girls were soon called down by Susan and Thatcher.

The family mostly ate in silence not wanting to overwhelm Meredith with conversation. They finished eating and spent the next hour helping Meredith get her clothes and other things put away. Then they went downstairs and put a movie on. Meredith sat by herself on a chair while the other three sat on the couch. Thatcher was barely paying attention to the movie and kept his attention on Meredith who was staring off to the side for most of the movie. He was worried that the girl hadn't said more than two words the whole day but remembered the therapist said this was something that might happen. They ordered takeout food for dinner and had light conversation. Susan noticed that Meredith only ate a couple bites of food but was happy when she drank a few glasses of water. She wanted to make sure they at least kept her hydrated so she wouldn't get sick. It was around 9pm when Meredith asked if she was allowed to go upstairs and go to bed. They told her of course she could and watched as she went up the stairs and heard the bathroom door close.

"Mom, should we be worried that she hasn't said more than a couple words all day and barely eats," Lexi asked genuinely concerned for the girl.

"Lexi, its okay. This is a normal reaction for someone who has been through as much as she has in the past 24 hours. We just have to keep a close eye on her but hopefully she will start feeling more comfortable and talk more. We just have to give her time," Susan replied and was glad her daughter seemed to quickly care for the girl. Lexi nodded her head and told her parents she was going to go upstairs to bed as well. Soon after Thatcher and Susan headed up. Both of them had only gotten a few hours of sleep at the hospital and knew they would need to be well rested. Lexi went into the room to find Meredith laying on the spare bed in her room with her eyes closed. Lexi went to the bathroom to get ready for bed and went back in to her room and laid down. Before she fell asleep Lexi made a promise to herself that she would do whatever it took to make Meredith feel like a part of the family.


	4. Chapter 4

Lexie woke up to the sound of mumbling. Confused at first, she suddenly remembered about her new roommate and turned on the light next to her bed. She could see Meredith tossing and turning on her bed and noticed a layer of sweat on the girl's forehead and saw the girl's hair was damp. She watched as the mumbling turned into cries and tried to wake the girl up figuring she was having a nightmare. She panicked when she couldn't seem to wake the girl up and ran to her room to grab her parents. She entered her parent's room down the hall and went to her mom's side of the bed.

"Mom, Dad, wake up," Lexie said as she gently shook her parents.

"Lexie, it's the middle of the night, what is wrong?" Thatcher asked as his wife woke up next to him.

"It's Meredith, I think she is having a nightmare, but I can't seem to get her to wake up," Lexie said as both her parents jumped out of bed and followed her back to her room. When they got back to the room Lexie noticed that Meredith's nightmare seemed to have gotten worse. She was now thrashing around in bed and yelling for her mom. Susan held back her tears as she heard the desperation in Meredith's voice and sat down on the bed. She grabbed her shoulder's and shook the girl until she bolted up in bed finally awake.

"Meredith, honey you were having a nightmare, but everything is okay," Thatcher said as he had sat down on the bed next to his wife.

"Where is my mom?" Meredith yelled out before she remembered that she was dead. "Sorry I woke you all up. I just forgot where I was for a minute," Meredith said as she tried to control her breathing.

"Honey you have nothing to apologize for," Susan said as she rubbed circles on the girls back. Noticing that her shirt was soaked through with sweat she turned to Lexie and asked her daughter to grab her a new shirt. Lexie went over to her dresser and grabbed a shirt wanting to do anything she could to help the girl in distress. Thatcher went out into the hallway, so the girl could change.

"Meredith would you like to take a shower, it might help you feel better before you go back to bed," Susan asked the girl who shook her head that she did. Susan and Lexie got up to let the girl go to the bathroom. Lexie felt a hand reach out towards hers and was surprised to see Meredith grabbing her hand. "I don't want to be alone right now, is there any way you could sit in the bathroom while I am in the shower?" Meredith asked her voice barely above a whisper. She couldn't quite explain what came over her, but Lexie made her feel safe and she couldn't be alone after the nightmare she had just had. Lexie shook her head, "Of course I can." Pulling Meredith up she gave the girl some privacy and let the girl get into the shower before she entered the room and sat on the toilet. She heard the water go off and handed the girl a towel, so she could wrap up. Her mom had brought a new set of pajamas into the bathroom while Meredith was in the shower and Lexie helped Meredith get the new shirt over her head while moving her shoulder as little as possible.

Meredith exited the bathroom and noticed that Susan was sitting on the bed waiting for the girls. Thatcher had gone downstairs to call Dr. Webber to see if there was anything they could do to help with her nightmares.

"Meredith would you like me to braid your hair for you," Susan asked as Meredith sat down on her bed with Lexie next to her. "Lexie likes me to do it for her after she takes a shower," Susan continued not wanting to make the girl uncomfortable. Meredith nodded her head yes and Susan spent the next couple minutes braiding the girl's hair. Seeing that the time was almost 5am and knowing Meredith wouldn't being going back to bed anytime soon the three of them decided to go downstairs and watch television. Thatcher had just gotten off the phone with Richard and joined his girls as they settled on the couch. This time Meredith sat on the couch close to but not touching Lexie. Thatcher couldn't help but smile as he thought that maybe everything would be okay.

000

The next few days were very busy for everyone in the house. Meredith had gone to the therapist the hospital had recommended for her to be evaluated. Thatcher and Susan were going to the therapist's office tomorrow to go over what had happened during the session. They decided that for now they would keep Meredith in Lexi's room since she seemed most relaxed around the girl. They had talked to both girls about this to make sure they were okay with it and both quickly agreed that they didn't mind sharing a room. Lexi had been going back to school for 2 days and during those days Thatcher and Susan had both stayed home to make sure Meredith wasn't alone. Today after Lexi got home from school the whole family was going to go over to Meredith's old house to get the rest of her things. Meredith had been pretty quiet during the day today and Thatcher and Susan decided just to give the girl her space. Lexi arrived home and an hour later the family was heading outside to make the 30 minute drive to where Meredith used to live.

Meredith's heartbeat began to speed up as she prepared herself to get into the car. She had only been in a car once since the accident and that was on the way home from the hospital. She was nervous then but also the pain meds and sedative she had been given after the accident were still in her system and had helped keep her calm. Her palms began to sweat but she didn't want to be a burden to other members of the family, so she decided not to say anything. Lexi asked her if she was okay and she shook her head to signal that she was and got into the backseat of the car. She kept her eyes closed the whole car ride and didn't say a word but sighed in relief when she felt Lexi reach her hand out to hold Meredith's.

Thatcher pulled the car into the driveway of the house he once lived in with his Ex-wife and turned off the car. The four of them all got out and they walked into the house. Lexi and Meredith went up to her old bedroom to grab the rest of her clothes and personal things while Susan and Thatcher grabbed some pictures and things from downstairs. They were at the house for a few hours and knew they would have to come back at some point to go through the rest of the things in the house and decide what they wanted to do with the house. They got back into the car with Meredith's things and this time both Susan and Thatcher noticed how tense Meredith looked in the back of the car. They made a mental note to mention this to her therapist tomorrow when they met with her. They got back to their house and unloaded the boxes to take inside. Susan went into the kitchen to get started on dinner while Lexi and Thatcher carried Meredith's boxes upstairs to the spare room. Meredith had been standing near the doorway and Susan motioned for her to come join her in the kitchen.

Susan couldn't explain the instant connection she had felt towards this girl who was a stranger. From the moment she first saw her she felt the need to protect her like she felt to protect Lexi. From the little Meredith had told her about her mother, Susan got the feeling that she hadn't been the most maternal figure in the world. She worked a lot and Meredith seemed to be on her own quite a bit. She knew that she owed it to Meredith to treat her like she would treat Lexi and hoped she could help the girl through the most difficult time in her life.


	5. Chapter 5

The next day Thatcher and Susan woke up early and got into the car to go see Meredith's therapist. Meredith and Lexie were still sleeping as the therapist wanted to meet with the couple without Meredith being present. They were going to discuss how Meredith's first session went and ways that the family could help Meredith as she dealt with everything that was coming up. Last night had been another tough one for Meredith as the girl woke up screaming from a nightmare. It took a while for the other three to calm Meredith down and she didn't fall asleep again until early in the morning. At that point Thatcher and Susan had just decided to stay up as the appointment was set for 7am. Lexie got into bed with the girl and they both were still sleeping when Thatcher and Susan left in the morning.

Thatcher pulled the car into the parking lot and they both got out grabbing hands before they made their way into the therapist's office. Helen Brunson had been a longtime friend of Dr. Webber's and he had provided Thatcher with her information before Meredith had been discharged from the hospital. Richard trusted Helen and knew she had experience dealing with cases like Meredith's. Thatcher and Susan walked in and were soon greeted by Helen who led them back to her office. She had met the two briefly when they had dropped Meredith off but wanted a chance to sit down with the couple to discuss Meredith. She wouldn't tell them specifics of what Meredith said, as that was between the two of them, but she felt it was important that the couple was aware of Meredith's case and how they might be able to help the young girl out.

"It's good to see you two again," Helen said as she motioned for them to sit down. "So, I asked the two of you to come in, so I could give you my evaluation of Meredith as well as give you some tips to help her out. So, we can talk for a bit and then if either of you have any questions feel free to ask." Helen waited for the two to nod that they understood before she continued talking.

"So, I only met with Meredith for an hour, but I have some initial observations that I wanted to share with you. I will not share specifics of what the two of us discussed but rather just give you a general sense of what I think is going on. Meredith is aware that I am talking with the two of you and I told her that everything she told me is confidential unless she expresses a desire to hurt herself or someone else. So, to start off with Meredith is dealing with grief having just lost her mother. She also is showing signs consistent with PTSD and anxiety. What I want to hear from the two of you is what your biggest concerns are about her." Helen finished as she waited for either one of the two sitting in front of her to respond.

Thatcher leaned forward in his chair and cleared his throat as he began to speak. "I guess my biggest concern would be the fact that she is barely talking to any of us and also can't sleep through the night without being woken up by nightmares."

"I know it probably scares you that she isn't talking much but this is also a very unique situation. She not only just lost her mother, but she is now in a new home with three strangers. I think that the more comfortable she starts to feel in your home, the more she will open up and feel like she belongs there. I am not too worried about the lack of talking right now but the sleep issues are something I would like to discuss with you two. How often is it happening and has she been having panic attacks as well?" Helen asked.

"It's happened every night since she came to live with us," Susan answered with sadness in her voice. "She had a panic attack one of the nights but every other night she has shut herself down when we try to comfort her for the most part. Our daughter Lexie will sometimes climb into bed with her and try to calm her down," Susan continued.

"Alright, well nightmares as to be expected especially since she watched her mom die during the car accident. That is something that I hope Meredith will discuss with me more in depth later on. I think her shutting down once she realizes where she is has to do again with the fact that you are strangers to her. It seems that Meredith has formed some sort of attachment towards Lexie in the short time they have known each other and will most likely seek her out for comfort. That is not an issue right now and is in fact good that she feels a little more comfortable with your daughter and allows her to be a source of comfort." Helen said this as Thatcher and Susan listened intently. "Remind Meredith when she wakes up in the middle of the night that she is safe and that you are there for her. Also, it might be helpful to suggest going downstairs and watching television for a little bit just to get her out of the room until she calms down. In most cases the nightmares will decrease over time, but we can revisit that soon if they continue to happen or get worse. Any other major concerns right now?" Helen asked.

"Thatcher and I both noticed that every time she gets in or near a car she tenses up and begins to panic. I know it has to be because she was in a car accident but is there anything, we can do to help with that?" Susan asked.

"Meredith is going to have a hard time getting in cars because she now associates them with getting into an accident and her mother dying. I would not advise you to avoid it altogether because she can't just hide from it but if she is very uncomfortable maybe try to do something else that doesn't involve a car. However, there will be times when she will need to get into a car so in those cases just remind her that she is safe." Helen said and the three continued to talk for close to an hour about different ways to help Meredith and how to handle a child who is grieving.

"Alright so our time is almost up but I am going to give you two my number and if you have any questions or something comes up just give me a call. Also, I think it might be helpful if down the road we set aside an hour for both of you, Meredith, and Lexie to meet and talk as a family. All four of you are going through a lot of changes and I think it could be helpful. I want to wait a few weeks before we do this so Meredith can start to feel like she is becoming a part of the family and is more comfortable, but I will continue to meet with her one-on-one." Helen said as Thatcher and Susan got up shaking her hand and heading out to head back home. Both of them feeling slightly better than they had just an hour before.


	6. Chapter 6

Two days had passed since Thatcher and Susan had talked with Meredith's therapist. Susan had to take Lexie to a dentist appointment and then to run some errands leaving Meredith home with Thatcher. Thatcher was a bit nervous to spend the day alone with his daughter but was also grateful for the opportunity to get some alone time to have a conversation with her. He barely knew Meredith and he knew that needed to change. Meredith also barely knew anything about him or his relationship with her mother, but he decided that today that would change. Meredith woke up and ate a little breakfast as Thatcher sat at the table reading the newspaper and drinking his coffee. He waited till Meredith finished eating before he started talking.

"Meredith I was thinking since Susan and Lexie are going to be gone for a couple hours today, we could go to your house and grab the rest of your stuff to bring back here." Thatcher watched as Meredith looked around for a minute before she turned towards him.

"Sure, I would be fine with that. I am just going to go upstairs so I can get changed and then I will be ready to go." Meredith said as she got up from the table and headed towards the stairs.

Thatcher and Meredith had been at the old house for about two hours when he suddenly had an idea.

"Meredith, I was thinking we could take a break and go grab a bite to eat for lunch if that is okay with you. I know a diner that is a few minutes away." Thatcher said and watched Meredith shake her head that it was okay to go.

They decided to walk since it was nice out and only a few minutes away. Plus, Thatcher thought Meredith might be more comfortable not having to get into the car again. They arrived at the diner and Thatcher opened the door to let Meredith in.

"Thank you. I actually have been here quite a few times when I lived over here." Meredith informed Thatcher as she sat down at a booth. The two ate in silence before Thatcher decided to break it.

"This diner was actually the first place I met your mother at." Thatcher said as he watched Meredith's eyes light up for a second and he decided to continue. "I had been in the city for most of the day and was looking for a place to eat when I came upon this diner. I walked in and sat down at the counter and after a couple minutes of eating a woman sat down next to me. We made small talk for a while and then I had to go but before I left your mom wrote down her number on a napkin and slipped it over to me." Thatcher continued to tell the story and watched the smile that was on Meredith's face as he told it.

"Meredith, I know this is weird living with Lexie, Susan, and I but I wanted you to know that if you ever want to talk or ask any questions about your mom, I would be more than happy to listen. I should have talked about her sooner, but I didn't want to upset you more." Thatcher watched Meredith's face and could tell she was struggling with something internally.

"Thank you for telling me that story. I guess I just haven't really accepted the fact that my mom is really gone. She worked a lot and wasn't home much, but she was still my mom and I miss her a lot." Meredith said as the tears started filling her eyes. "I guess I thought if I didn't talk about her it wouldn't hurt as much but listening to you tell that story made me want to learn more about what my mom was like before I was born." Meredith said as Thatcher shook his head to signal he understood.

"Well I would be happy to tell you more stories so just let me know when you are ready to talk, and I will be available. I want you to know that I see you as my daughter just as much as Lexie. I don't want you to feel like a stranger in our house and I hope one day you might see me as your father. I know we just met but I am hoping that over time we can have that kind of relationship." Thatcher said as Meredith nodded her head slightly. The two finished up eating and headed back to the house to pack up the rest of the things to take back with them.

Susan and Lexie had just arrived back to the house and were surprised to see Thatcher sitting on the couch watching the tv with Meredith asleep, her head on his shoulder. Susan had to fight back tears because she had never seen Meredith comfortable enough around her husband to make physical contact. Thatcher quietly said hi to both of them as they made their way into the kitchen to start dinner. Thatcher came in a few minutes later as Meredith had woken up and decided to take a shower before they ate.

"Looks like you two had a pretty good day," Susan said as she pulled salad out of the fridge.

"Yeah it actually went a lot better than I expected. We got the rest of her things out of the old house and then I took her out to lunch. We went back to the house after that and then finished packing. We got back here about an hour ago and decided to watch some tv. I noticed Meredith was sitting pretty close to me and about 10 minutes in to watching tv I felt her head on my shoulder and she was passed out." Thatcher said with a smile on his face and watched both his daughter and wife smile in return. He knew they had a long way to go but today felt like a victory even if it was small.


	7. Chapter 7

It had been 3 weeks since Meredith had moved into Thatcher's house. She was starting to feel a little more comfortable, but it still didn't feel like home to her. She was grateful to how welcoming and warm Susan and Lexie had been with her and was getting to know Thatcher and his family better. The nightmares will still there, and Lexie would always get into bed with her and hold her until she fell back asleep. Meredith would be starting school again soon and would be in the same grade as Lexie so luckily she would know at least one person. It was a Saturday and Lexie was going to hang out with some friends.

"Hey Meredith, is there any chance you would want to come with me to hang out with some of my friends?" Lexie asked as she entered the kitchen where Thatcher and Susan were sitting with Meredith at the table finishing up breakfast. Lexie was becoming closer with Meredith and didn't want the girl to feel left out.

"Oh, thank you for the offer but I really don't want to intrude," Meredith said shyly as she looked back down at her food.

"You wouldn't be intruding at all. Plus, my friends have been wanting to meet you," Lexie said as Susan chimed in. "I think that is a great idea Lexie. Meredith it might be nice for you to meet some of Lexie's friends before you start school next week," Susan finished as she looked up from the newspaper.

"Meredith we won't push you to do anything you don't want to do but it's a nice day out today and it might be good to get some fresh air," Thatcher said looking over to Meredith.

"As long as you are sure you don't mind then yes, I will like to come," Meredith said. The truth was she was nervous about starting out at a new school but thought that meeting some other people who were going to be in her grade as well might help with that. She had felt safe and comfortable with Lexie and she wanted a day where she didn't have to sit around and think about her mom and everything that had happened in the past couple weeks.

"Of course, I don't mind. We are going to meet them in the park down the road in like 30 minutes," Lexie said as she smiled at Meredith and sat down to eat a little food.

"Okay, I will go upstairs and get ready then," Meredith said as she cleared her plate from the table and went upstairs to get changed.

"I think it will be good for Meredith to get out of the house for a few hours. Thank you for inviting her Lexie," Thatcher said as he poured himself another cup of coffee.

"No problem, I like spending time with her and want her to meet some of my friends," Lexie said as she checked her phone and saw messages from Alex and Christina. She texted both of them back letting them know what time to meet and let them know that Meredith would be coming along as well. Lexie had told them about Meredith at school and didn't tell them a lot but let them know that she had just lost her mom and moved in with them. They both replied that they would be at the park in 30 minutes.

Lexie and Meredith walked out of the house and made the short 5-minute walk to the park. It was a nice day out and the two made small talk as they walked. They walked into the entrance of the park and made their way over to a bench where a girl and guy were sitting arguing over something. They both stopped when they saw the two girls and got up from the bench.

"Hey guys, this is Meredith," Lexie said as she motioned to the girl next to her.

"Meredith, this is Alex and Christina," Lexie told Meredith as she pointed to the guy and girl standing across from her.

"Hi Meredith, nice to meet you," Alex said, and Christina waved to her from where she was standing.

"It's nice to meet you to. Thank you for letting me hang out with you guys today," Meredith said as she looked down to the ground. She was feeling a little nervous and was grateful when Lexie kept the conversation going as the group made their way through the park. They walked around for a while and Meredith mostly listened to the three other people talk. After a while they decided to go back to Lexie's house to watch some tv. They made it back to the house and after saying hi to Lexie's parents the teens went to the living room to watch tv.

"So, Meredith, I hear you are starting at our school next week," Christina said as she looked at Meredith. Meredith couldn't explain why but she felt slightly intimidated by Christina. She could tell the girl was very sure of herself and smart so that might have been why.

"Yes, I am," Meredith said as she looked up at Christina.

"Well then you will get to meet George and Izzie then. They couldn't hang out today, but they are also friends with us," Alex said as he smiled at Meredith. Unlike with Christina, Meredith felt more comfortable with Alex.

"I am looking forward to it and meeting everyone," Meredith said as she reached over for her water on the counter.

"Yeah, George and Izzie are nice. We call George, 007. I don't even remember how we came up with the nickname, but it has stuck," Lexie said as Alex and Christina laughed at George's nickname.

"How long have you guys known each other," Meredith asked.

"Let's see, I met Alex when we were in elementary school and then Christina, George, and Izzie in middle school," Lexie said as she reached over for the popcorn Susan had made for them on the counter. Meredith smiled at hearing this. She had a few friends from her old school, but she never had a tight knit group of friends like Lexie did. She was glad that they were including her and thought that maybe she could have a chance to be a part of the friend group.

000

Later that night Lexie and Meredith were upstairs getting ready to go to bed. Meredith was already lying in bed and Lexie came in soon after and got in bed pulling a book out to read before she went to sleep.

"Hey Lexie, I just wanted to say thank you for today," Meredith said from across the room. "I had a really good day and it was nice to get out of the house and hang out with your friends. They seem really nice," Meredith finished as Lexie looked up from her book.

"I'm really glad you had a good day. They are really nice. Christina can seem a little intimidating at first, but she really is a good friend once you get to know her," Lexie said as she saw the smile on Meredith's face. It was one of the only times she had seen Meredith smile since she had been living with them and she was glad to see Meredith look happy for once.

"They both seemed nice and I am looking forward to meeting George and Izzie at school next week," Meredith said. The girls talked for a few more minutes and eventually both of them drifted off to sleep. Lexie woke up the next morning in her own bed and realized that Meredith hadn't woke up screaming last night. It was a small victory but at this point Lexie was glad that Meredith got a good night of sleep for the first time in weeks.


	8. Chapter 8

Meredith woke to the sound of an alarm and dreaded the prospect of waking up so early. It was her first day at Lexie's school and she was feeling a mix of emotions. Part of her was happy to get back to a normal routine and to feel like a teenager again but the other half of her was terrified. She had Lexie and had met some of her friends the weekend before, but she also was going to be the new girl who started in the middle of the school year. Luckily for her she had managed to get into most of Lexie's classes but there was one that she had different from her. Hearing Lexie begin to shuffle in the bed across the room, Meredith got up and went to use the bathroom and get ready for the day.

"Hey Meredith, are you ready for your first day of school?" Susan asked, smiling at the young girl who had just come down the stairs.

"Yes, I think so," Meredith said looking down at the floor. She still felt a little nervous around Susan and Thatcher.

"Well I am sure you will do fine, but if you need anything, I will be available. I am going into work for a few hours at the bakery and Thatcher is going into the office to work today but don't hesitate to call either of us if you need anything or want to leave," Susan said as she finished making breakfast for the two girls and set it down on the table.

"Thank you, I appreciate that Susan, but I should be fine," Meredith said as she reached over to grab some food.

Lexie came down the stairs a few minutes later and grabbed some food. Thatcher came down before both the girls left and wished them both a good day at school as they made their way out the door. Lexie usually walked to school since it was 10 minutes away. Occasionally she would get a ride from Alex or Christina but decided it was probably best if they just walked today. The two girls left the house and made their way to the school. Lexie walked with Meredith to the office where she picked up her class schedule and locker code and then the two walked over towards the lockers. They found Alex and Christina standing with Izzie and George. Lexie waved towards her friends as she walked over to them with Meredith following slowly behind. Lexie noticed that ever since Meredith had walked into the school, she had gotten very quiet and timid. Lexie wasn't surprised since it was her first day at a new school but hoped she would warm up once she met the rest of her friends.

"Hey Lexie, hey Meredith," Alex said as he waved to the two girls. Alex said hi back and Meredith just shyly smiled at him.

"Hey Izzie and George, this is Meredith," Lexie said as she pointed to the girl next to her.

"Hi Meredith, it's nice to finally meet you," Izzie said as she smiled at the girl.

"It's nice to meet you too," Meredith replied and as George waved hi to her as well.

Not long after the first bell of the day rung, and Lexie said bye to all her friends and walked Meredith to their first class of the day. The school had tried to put Meredith in most of Lexie's classes since they understood her situation, but Meredith wasn't in Lexie's last class of the day. However, Christina was in the same class as Meredith, so she told Lexie she would look out for Meredith during that class. They day went by pretty fast for Meredith. There was a lot going on and she stayed quiet most of the day really only talking to Lexie. They got to the last class of the day and Meredith walked with Christina to their class as Lexie went to her own. Meredith sat down in the back next to Christina and the two girls sat in silence for a minute before Christina turns towards Meredith.

"So how has your first day at the new school gone?" Christina asked as Meredith turned towards her.

"Pretty good so far. I'm glad that Lexie is in most of my classes because I don't really like meeting new people," Meredith replied to Christina.

"Oh yeah I definitely get that. I'm glad that at least one person from our friend group is in each of my classes because I also don't like having to talk with other people," Christina said trying to make Meredith feel more comfortable.

"Yeah I was glad that you were in this class as well," Meredith said as the two girls turned back to the front of the room when the teacher walked in. After the class had finished the two girls walked back to their lockers where they were soon met by Lexie. The three talked for a few minutes and then Lexie and Meredith said goodbye to Christina and the rest of the friend group before they began their walk home. Walking in the door they were greeted by Susan who had just gotten back from work. Thatcher would be home around dinnertime so that just left the three of them until then.

"Hey girls, how did school go," Susan asked as the two girls walked through the door.

"It went pretty well," Alex answered.

"That's good, Meredith how did your first day go?" Susan asked the girl who was quietly standing in the entrance to the kitchen.

"It was good. I'm a little tired though so if it's alright I think I am just going to go lay upstairs for a little bit," Meredith said back to Susan.

"Of course, you can. I will come up and get you when dinner is ready," Susan said as Meredith nodded her head and went up the stairs.

"How was she today?" Susan turned towards her daughter who was grabbing a snack out of the fridge.

"She seemed alright. She was pretty quiet, but I figured she would be since it was her first day at a new school. She was in all my classes except for the last one but Christina was in her class so at least she had someone she had met before," Lexie replied as Susan sat down at the table with her daughter.

"Yeah I mean it can't be easy starting at a new school during the middle of a semester and not really knowing anyone. Hopefully after she has met some more people and gotten more comfortable there she will talk some more," Susan replied as she went back to unloading the dishwasher. Lexie got up a few minutes later and went into the living room to watch some tv before they ate dinner. Thatcher got home about an hour later and helped Susan finish up dinner. Lexie was helping set the table, so Susan decided she would go upstairs and see if Meredith was awake. Susan walked in the girl's room and saw Meredith sleeping in her bed. She looked so peaceful sleeping for once and Susan almost didn't want to wake the girl up but knew she should eat some food tonight. Susan went over to the bed and sat down on the side of it and gently rubbed Meredith's back.

"Hey Meredith, we are going to eat dinner soon," Susan said as Meredith slowly woke up.

"Alright mom I will be down in a minute," Meredith said as she rolled over and after realizing that it was Susan started to panic. "Oh, sorry Susan. I was confused when I woke up and thought you were my mom," Meredith said as she closed her eyes again for a second. She had been dreaming about her mom before Susan woke her up and for a second forgot that her mom was gone.

"It's not a problem at all dear. Did you want to talk about anything?" Susan asked not wanting to pry but wanting to make sure Meredith was okay.

"No, it's fine. I will be down in a minute to eat," Meredith said as she walked towards the bathroom to freshen up before she went downstairs. Susan went down and was closely followed behind by Meredith.

"Hey Meredith, how did school go today?" Thatcher asked seeing his daughter come down the stairs.

"It was fine," Meredith replied and sat down at the table to eat. She wasn't very hungry but didn't want everyone to worry about her, so she tried to eat as much as she could. She was nearing the end of dinner when she noticed that she wasn't feeling very well. She had been really tired all day and now noticed that her stomach was bothering her. She didn't want to be a bother to Susan and Thatcher, so she excused herself from the table and made her way upstairs to take a shower. She got out of the shower and was feeling a little dizzy, so she sat down on the floor. Suddenly feeling a wave a nausea, she opened the toilet lid and threw up. She heard a knock at the door and heard Lexie on the other side of it.

"Hey Meredith, are you okay?" Lexie asked as Meredith tried to answer but felt another wave of nausea come over her. Lexie was worried about her, so she opened the door and saw Meredith throwing up again in the toilet. She wasn't exactly sure what to do so she went to her parent's room and found her mom folding some clothes.

"Hey mom, can you come to our bathroom. Meredith is sick and is throwing up," Lexie said as Susan immediately ran out of her room and into the bathroom. As soon as she entered Meredith was getting sick again, so she ran over to the girl and held back her hair and rubbed her back.

"Alright you are okay Meredith, just get it out of your system and you will feel better," Susan said as Meredith finally finished and leaned back against the bathtub. Lexie handed Susan a cup of water and Meredith took it and rinsed her mouth out thanking them for the help. Thatcher had heard the commotion and went into the cabinet in the hallway grabbing a thermometer and medicine for the young girl. He handed the thermometer to Susan who put it in the girl's mouth and frowned when she noticed Meredith had a fever.

"Your temperature is 102 so you definitely have a fever. Let's get you some medicine and then you can go lie down," Susan said as she grabbed the medicine from Thatcher. "How long have you felt bad for Hun," Susan said as she looked at the pale girl in front of her.

"I was tired all day, but I thought it was because I didn't sleep well last night but then I didn't feel that great during dinner but didn't want to bother anyone. Then when I got out of the shower I wasn't feeling well and got dizzy, so I sat down," Meredith replied as she took some of the medicine that Susan had handed her.

"Hun if you weren't feeling well during dinner you should have just let one of us know," Thatcher said as Meredith looked up to him.

"Sorry I guess I should have said something," Meredith replied as she looked down again.

"You don't need to apologize, we just want to make sure you are okay," Susan responded as she looked over to the girl sitting on the ground. Susan and Thatcher helped Meredith up as she still was a little dizzy and took her over to her bed which Lexie had gotten ready for her to get into. They laid her down and covered her up putting a bucket next to the bed in case she felt sick again and soon after she quickly fell asleep. Lexie went back downstairs to do her homework for the next day as Susan and Thatcher went into the kitchen.

"I hate that Meredith is sick and we don't know what makes her feel better. I don't know what she likes to eat or drink well she is sick," Thatcher said as Susan came over and put a hand on his back.

"I know, I hate seeing her like this especially after everything she has been through but all we can do is try to help her feel better as much as possible. We are probably going to need to get some supplies from the store though," Susan replied to her husband.

"Why don't I go to the store and pick some stuff up well she is asleep," Thatcher said desperate to do anything he could to help out his daughter.

"That would be great. We are going to need some more fever reducer medicine so why don't you get some of that and then some soup and crackers. I would also get some ginger ale to help with her stomach and then some Gatorade, so we can keep her hydrated in case she keeps getting sick," Susan said as Thatcher wrote down everything on a list and then headed to the store. Well he was gone Susan went back upstairs and was relieved to find for now Meredith was still sleeping and hadn't gotten sick again. Thatcher got back 30 minutes later and unloaded all the stuff onto the kitchen table. He grabbed a bottle of ginger ale and some Gatorade and took it upstairs to put on the table next to Meredith's bed. He walked in and noticed that the girl had just woken up.

"Hey, feeling any better?" Thatcher asked as he set the drinks down on the table.

"A little," Meredith replied as Thatcher smiled slightly.

"Good. I brought some drinks up for you. I wasn't sure what you liked to drink well you were sick, so I just got a couple different things," Thatcher said nervously.

"I usually drink ginger ale or blue Gatorade," Meredith said as Thatcher handed her a glass of ginger ale and she took a couple small sips. Thatcher noticed Meredith still seemed pretty tired, so he told her to get some more sleep and went back downstairs. Alex came up to her room an hour later and found Meredith still sleeping. She got into bed and shut off her light as she soon fell asleep.

Lexie woke up 2 hours later to the sound of whimpering coming from the other side of the room. She sat up slightly and noticed that Meredith was awake and squirming in pain on her bed.

"Meredith, are you okay?" Lexie asked as she made her way over to the other girl's bed. Meredith didn't answer but shot up in bed and tried to get to the bathroom but didn't make it as she threw up all over the floor. Thatcher and Susan had woken up with all the noise and came in to find Lexie holding a bucket under Meredith as the girl continued to get sick into it. Susan grabbed the girl's hair and held it back as Thatcher went to grab a towel to put on the floor. After Meredith finished, Susan and Lexie got her to the bathroom and sat her down on the floor. Thatcher worked on cleaning up the bedroom floor as Lexie and Susan helped clean Meredith up and get her into a new pair of pajamas.

"Lexie can you grab the thermometer for me," Susan said as Lexie nodded her head and went to grab it. "Meredith is there anything I can do for you?" Susan asked as she wanted to do whatever she could to make her feel better.

"I want my mom," Meredith replied as she began to cry.

"I know sweetie, she's not here but I'm here. You are not alone," Susan replied as she held back the tears threatening to spill out of her eyes. Meredith continued to cry as she curled up on the floor with her head in Susan's lap. Susan ran her hands through the girl's hair and rubbed her back as she waited for Lexie to return. Lexie came back into the room and put the thermometer in Meredith's mouth as she sat down and grabbed the girl's hand. The thermometer beeped, and Lexie took it out.

"It's still 102," Lexie said as her mom nodded.

"Alright grab me the fever reducer your dad got from the store," Susan said as Alex reached over to the counter and grabbed the medicine as Susan gave the pill to Meredith and got her to take it. Meredith was still crying softly at this point and Susan just sat there holding her while Lexie held her hand. They sat like that for about 20 minutes before Thatcher came back into the bathroom having finished cleaning up the floor in the bedroom. Meredith was beginning to fall asleep at this point and Thatcher picked up the girl and carried her over to her bed. Susan was still cleaning up the floor of the bathroom and Lexie went downstairs to get some Gatorade for Meredith. Thatcher laid Meredith in her bed and pulled the sheets up over her.

"Sorry for waking you all up," Meredith said as looked up at Thatcher.

"Meredith, you are part of our family now and this is what family does for each other," Thatcher said as he pushed Meredith's hair out of her eyes. Lexie came back up a minute later with a glass of Gatorade and helped Meredith take a few sips before she drifted back off to sleep. Susan came back out of the bathroom and turned towards Lexie.

"Hey honey why don't you go sleep in our bed with Dad. You both have to be up early in the morning for work and school and I don't have to work tomorrow. Meredith obviously won't be going to school tomorrow and you should get some sleep. I can just sleep in your bed for the rest of the night," Susan said as Thatcher and Lexie both said goodnight and left to go to sleep for a few more hours. Susan went over to Meredith and kissed the girl on the head before she went over to Lexie's bed as she laid down she looked over at Meredith one more time hoping the girl would start to feel better soon.


	9. Chapter 9

Lexie and Thatcher both left for school and work around 7 am. That left Susan and Meredith at home alone for most of the day. Susan woke up around 8 am and was glad to see that Meredith was still sound asleep. She had slept the rest of the night after waking up and getting sick. Susan went to take a shower while Meredith was still asleep and came back 30 minutes later to find Meredith turning over in the bed.

"Hey, are you feeling any better?" Susan asked as she stood by the girl's bed.

"I am feeling a little better," Meredith said as she tried to get out of bed. She took a step and immediately felt dizzy. Susan noticed and reached out to take Meredith's arm.

"Here why don't I help you," Susan said as Meredith thanked her and the two walked to the bathroom. Susan waited back in the girl's room for Meredith to finish up and helped her back to the bed.

"Do you want to try some toast for breakfast? Lexie always likes to eat that when she is sick," Susan asked as she helped pull the covers over Meredith.

"Sure, that sounds good," Meredith replied as Susan nodded her head and went down to the kitchen. She came back up a few minutes later with some toast and a glass of Gatorade.

"Thank you for the food. Sorry that you have to spend your free day taking care of me," Meredith said starting to eat some of the toast.

"Honey, you don't need to apologize for that. I don't mind taking care of you at all. I am sorry that you are not feeling well," Susan said wanting the girl to understand that she didn't need to apologize for everything. "Also, I know we don't know each other very well, but if there is ever anything you need to talk about, I want you to know you can come to me," Susan finished.

"Thank you, I appreciate that," Meredith said as she took a drink. Susan got up and grabbed some more medicine for Meredith to take and the thermometer. She was relieved to find that Meredith still had a fever, but it had gone down a bit from last night. She gave Meredith some more medicine to take and soon after Meredith fell back asleep. Susan went downstairs and started to clean the downstairs while Meredith slept. She had been cleaning for about an hour when the home phone started ringing.

"Hello," Susan said.

"Hey honey, how is Meredith feeling?" Thatcher asked.

"She was feeling better when I checked on her a little bit ago. She still has a bit of a fever but she was able to eat some toast so that is good," Susan replied as she sat down at the table.

"Good, I'm glad. Hey, I have a meeting I have to go to in a few minutes, but I just wanted to check in," Thatcher said as he talked to Susan for another minute before he hung up and went to his meeting.

Meredith woke up a few hours later and was feeling a lot better than she had last night. She still felt a little weak and tired but wanted to leave her bedroom and go downstairs for a little bit. She went into the bathroom cleaned herself up a little bit before heading down the stairs.

"Hey, you are looking a little better," Susan said as she greeted Meredith by the base of the stairs.

"Yeah I am feeling better, just a little tired and weak but that's it," Meredith said as she smiled shyly at Susan.

"That's good. Do you want anything to eat?" Susan asked as Meredith shrugged her shoulders.

"I guess. I am not super hungry, but I should probably eat something," Meredith said as she followed Susan into the kitchen.

"Alright well I made some homemade chicken soup well you were sleeping so why don't I heat up some of that. Why don't you sit down at the table and I will bring it over to you," Susan said as Meredith nodded her head and went to sit down. Susan brought it over a few minutes later and set it down in front of Meredith and then sat down next to the girl.

"Thank you," Meredith said as Susan smiled back at her. "You know my mom never really cooked a lot. She was busy with work most of the time, so we would usually get takeout but one night she came home from work and I found her in the kitchen pulling out an old cookbook. For some reason she felt like baking, so we spent that whole night trying to make cookies from scratch. They didn't turn out that well, but I will always remember how much fun we had," Meredith said smiling sadly as she thought of her mom.

"It sounds like you two had a fun time," Susan said glad that Meredith was finely beginning to open up to her. This is one of the only times she had heard Meredith mention her mom and enjoyed learning more about the women who raised her. "You know if baking is something you are interested you could always come with me to the bakery with me on the weekend. Lexie sometimes will come with me and help me make some of the desserts," Susan said and noticed the small smile that appeared on Meredith's face.

"I think I would like that," Meredith said, and the two women were interrupted by the sound of a door opening and shutting. Lexie appeared and smiled as soon as she saw Meredith.

"Hey glad to see that you are finally up," Lexie said coming over to the table.

"Yeah I am feeling much better than I was last night," Meredith said going back to eating her soup.

"That's good. I grabbed your homework for you from our classes so if you're feeling up to it in a little bit, we can work on it together," Lexie said going to the fridge to grab a snack and then made her way over to the table to sit down.

"Sure, sounds good," Meredith said as the two girls made their way over to the couch to watch some tv before they worked on their homework.

000

Thatcher had just gotten home from work and was greeted by his wife who was just finishing up dinner.

"Hey hun, how did work go?" Susan asked as she kissed him on the lips.

"It was pretty good, I was busy most of the day, but it went by fast," Thatcher said helping Susan finish up the rest of dinner. "Where are the girls," Thatcher said not seeing them in the living room.

"They are upstairs working on some homework. I was actually going to call them down for dinner in a minute," Susan said as she cut up a cucumber for the salad.

"Why don't I go up and get them," Thatcher said as he left the kitchen and headed up the stairs to the girl's room. He was stopped just outside the room but the sound of laughter. He peeked into the room and saw both girls sitting on Lexie's bed laughing at something on Lexie's laptop. He waited a minute before he went into the room. The sight of the two girls on the bed laughing and having a good time was all he ever wanted. He knocked on the door and walked in as both girls turned towards the door.

"Hey dad, how was work?" Lexie asked as she smiled at him.

"It was pretty good. Meredith are you feeling any better?" Thatcher asked as he turned towards the other girl on the bed.

"Yeah I actually am feeling pretty good," Meredith said as Thatcher smiled hearing that.

"Good, I'm glad. We are going to eat dinner in a few minutes," Thatcher said as both girls nodded their heads and headed towards the stairs to go to the kitchen. They sat down for dinner and kept the conversation pretty casual as everyone was hungry and tired from their days. After dinner Lexie and Meredith went back upstairs to finish their homework as Thatcher and Susan sat down on the couch to watch some tv. They kept the volume low as they mostly talked about their days.

"So, Meredith talked about her mom a little bit today," Susan said as she rested her head on Thatcher's shoulder.

"Oh really, what about," Thatcher said turning towards his wife.

"She told me a story about how one night her mom came home from work and the two of them baked cookies for the whole night. I told her if she ever wanted to bake with me, she could come to the bakery like Lexie does sometimes," Susan said.

"That sounds like a good idea. I'm glad that she felt comfortable enough to talk about her. When I went upstairs, I saw her and Lexie laughing and just having a good time. It was one of the first times I saw Meredith acting like a teenager and that made me happy," Thatcher said as Susan cuddled to his side.

"I know what you mean. I always take it as a victory when I see a small smile on her face and I am noticing it more every week. I also wanted to make sure that we are treating her more like a daughter and less like a guest. I want her to feel like she is a part of the family," Susan said.

"I agree. I think it will take time but hopefully she will feel like she fits in here over time," Thatcher said as the two went back to watching their show.

Meanwhile upstairs Lexie and Meredith had just finished up their homework for the next day.

"Hey thanks for grabbing all of this for me," Meredith said pointing to all the paperwork in front of her.

"No problem. I missed having you in all my classes today. It wasn't as much fun," Lexie said as she looked over towards Meredith.

"I actually wished I could have been at school today instead of home sick. I should be able to go back tomorrow so you won't have to miss me too much," Meredith said as she got up and put her homework in her backpack for tomorrow. "Hey is there any chance you have any drawing supplies," Meredith asked. It was something she used to do to pass the time when she was bored at home and she hadn't felt like drawing again since she got here until today.

"Yeah, my mom used to like to draw so she has some stuff in a closet in the other room. Let me go grab some of it for you," Lexie said as Meredith nodded and watched Lexie walk into the other room. She came back a minute later with some paper and different pencils and coloring supplies.

"Thank you," Meredith said as she grabbed the supplies from Lexie and sat down at the desk in the room. Lexie sat down on her bed and put some music on as she pulled out her laptop. The two girls sat in comfortable silence occasionally talking to one another but both doing their own activities. They stayed like that for another hour before both of them were beginning to get tired and both started to get ready for bed. Lexie laid down and bed and said goodnight to Meredith as she turned over. Lexie closed her eyes and smiled thinking that this is what is was like to have a sister as she slowly drifted off to sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

Two weeks had passed since Meredith had been sick and things had been better than ever. Meredith was becoming closer with Lexie's friends and school was going well for her. She was starting to feel closer to everyone in the family and things were starting to become normal again. Lexie woke up on a Saturday morning and looked over to Meredith's bed and noticed the girl wasn't there. She checked the clock and saw it was 8am. Meredith usually liked to sleep in on the weekends, but she figured she was just downstairs watching tv or drawing. Lexie made her way to the bathroom and took a shower before making her way downstairs. She walked by her parent's room and noticed that they were still asleep. She got down into the kitchen and still didn't see Meredith anywhere. She checked in the living room and out on the porch. She began to feel a little worried because Meredith never left the house without another member of the family. She tried to call her cell phone, but it went straight to voicemail. She went back upstairs and woke up her parents.

"Hey, did Meredith have anything going on this morning? She isn't in our room and I don't see her anywhere downstairs. I tried calling her phone and she didn't pick up," Lexie said as both her parents sat up and quickly got out of bed.

"She didn't tell us she had anywhere to be," Susan said as Thatcher tried calling her phone again with no luck. The three went downstairs and spent 30 minutes trying to figure out where the girl could have gone. Lexie texted her friends to make sure that they hadn't heard from her. They all texted back that they hadn't but would let her know if they heard anything. The three of them in the house were all starting to freak out and Susan was getting close to calling the cops when Thatcher looked down at the calendar and saw the date.

"Today is her mom's birthday," Thatcher said as Lexie and Susan turned around.

"What," Susan said as she put down the phone.

"Ellis's birthday is today. It's her first birthday that she isn't alive for. I'm sure it upset Meredith," Thatcher continued as both girls looked at him.

"Why didn't she tell any of us," Lexie said.

"Honey, you know it isn't easy for her to talk about her mom," Susan said as Lexie nodded her head. "Alright so where do we think she went. We didn't have a funeral, so she wouldn't be at a cemetery and the ashes are sitting in the closet here," Susan continued as Thatcher thought of something.

"I think I know where she might be. I think it is probably best if I go alone but I will let you know as soon as I find her," Thatcher said as Susan and Lexie wanted to protest but knew the two probably needed some time alone. Thatcher said goodbye to both of them and starting driving to Meredith's old house. He pulled up to the house and after looking through it and not finding Meredith he looked out the back door and saw her sitting up against a tree. He slowly walked out the door and saw Meredith wiping tears from her eyes as she turned towards him.

"Sorry I know I should have left a note or told someone where I was going," Meredith said looking up at Thatcher.

"I would have brought you here if you had told me. We were all very worried when we couldn't find you this morning," Thatcher said as he pulled out his phone and sent a message to his wife that he had found Meredith. He put the phone back into his pocket and went to sit down across from the young girl.

"I know I just didn't think. I woke up and remembered that it was my mom's birthday and it was all too much, so I went outside and before I knew it, I had taken the bus and ended up near the house. My mom usually worked most of her birthdays and mine for that matter, but I would usually still see her for an hour or two and I just realized that I would never see her again on her birthday," Meredith finished as she looked down at the ground trying to stop the tears coming out of her eyes.

"I know you miss her Meredith. I don't think there is anything I can say that will help right now," Thatcher said as he almost wished Susan had come with him. His wife always had a way with words and right now he didn't know what to say to the girl crumbling in front of him.

"No, you don't know. You weren't there," Meredith yelled, and Thatcher was taken aback for a minute. He had never heard the girl raise her voice. "I want to be mad at her for always putting work before me. I want to hate her for treating me like a pet instead of her daughter, but I can't because she is dead. You don't know what it was like growing up as the daughter of the famous Ellis Grey. She was a fantastic doctor but when it came to being a mother, she had no clue what she was doing. I can't even tell her any of this because she can't hear me anymore and that sucks," Meredith continued as the tears began falling faster. "I can't help but think what my life could have been like had you been around. I could have had a childhood like Lexie with two parents but instead I had one who couldn't even bother to take a day off for my birthday," Meredith was sobbing at this point and could barely get the words out. She wrapped her arms around her legs and put her head in her knees and just let the tears come out.

"Meredith, I wish more than anything that I could have been around when you were growing up. I'm so sorry that you were alone and if I had known about you, I would have been there. I know your mom isn't around anymore, but you are allowed to feel however you do," Thatcher said and not knowing what else to say reached out and put his hand on Meredith's back. She turned so her head was against his shoulder and the two sat like that for a while as she continued to cry.

000

Thatcher and Meredith made their way back to his house and he drove in mostly silence. Meredith had gone into the bathroom and cleaned herself up before they had headed back, and Thatcher had called Susan and let her know what was going on. He pulled into the driveway and Meredith got out of the car and headed straight upstairs to her room and laid down on her bed. She didn't feel like talking to anyone right now and just wanted to rest. Thatcher walked in behind Meredith and went into the kitchen where Susan and Lexie were sitting both wearing concerned looks on their faces.

"Should I go up and talk to her," Lexie said as she looked towards her parents.

"Why don't you give her some time alone," Susan said as she knew the girl probably would want to be left alone. Lexie nodded her head and went onto the porch to listen to some music.

"I have never seen her that angry. She has so much anger directed towards her mother that I never knew about, and I felt so guilty sitting there," Thatcher said as Susan rubbed his back.

"Thatcher you never knew about Meredith. I know if you did know about her you would have done something. I think that it is probably a good thing that she got some of that anger out though. She has obviously been holding onto it for a long time and she needs to deal with some of it otherwise it will consumer her," Susan said as Thatcher nodded his head.

"I know I just hope she will be okay," Thatcher said as he put his head in his hands. Susan reached over and grabbed one of his hands. Thatcher knew in this moment that he had to step up and be the father that Meredith never had growing up. He knew that he owed at least that to the girl.


	11. Chapter 11

Meredith spent the rest of the day upstairs in her room. The whole family gave her space knowing she needed some time to be alone. They were downstairs getting dinner ready when they heard footsteps. Looking up they saw Meredith appear at the doorway. She looked timid and Susan smiled at her as they made eye contact.

"Hey are you hungry? We are just about to sit down to eat," Susan asked as she continued getting the food ready.

"Sure, that sounds good," Meredith said as she took a deep breath. "Also, I just wanted to say sorry again for leaving this morning without telling anyone," Meredith said as she helped Lexie set the table.

"It's okay, but next time just tell one of us, so we know where you are. We were all worried when we couldn't find you this morning," Susan said as she smiled at the girl, so she wouldn't think she was in trouble.

"Alright I will do that. Its just been a while since I had to tell someone where I was going. My mom usually wasn't at home, so I wasn't used to letting someone know where I was going but from now on, I will be sure to do that," Meredith said as the family sat down to eat dinner. The conversation turned towards lighter topics for the rest of the meal and after they were done eating Lexie and Meredith went into the living room to watch some tv. After a while Lexie got up to go take a shower and Susan had gone out to get some ingredients for a new desert, she was sampling for the bakery. Thatcher took this opportunity to see if Meredith would talk to him. He came over to the couch and turned the volume down as he sat.

"Hey, I was wondering if we could talk for a minute," Thatcher said as he nervously turned towards his daughter.

"Sure," Meredith said turning towards him.

"Look I know I don't know a lot about how your life was growing up and I know you have a lot of anger towards your mother, but I don't think she is the only one you are angry with," Thatcher said as Meredith's facial expression changed. "I'm not wrong, am I," Thatcher said.

"No, you're not. Look I know it is probably not fair for me to be angry with you since you didn't know about me but part of me is," Meredith said as she looked down.

"Meredith you're allowed to be angry with me. I don't want you to shove all of your feelings down because obviously that isn't working out too well," Thatcher said as he waited for the girl to respond.

"I know, but I feel guilty for being angry with you. You and Susan took me in when you didn't have to, and I owe you two a lot for that," Meredith said as she continued to look down at her hands.

"Honey, you don't owe us anything. Your part of our family and that is what we do for one another. Your allowed to feel angry with me," Thatcher said as Meredith began to look up again.

"I don't think I am necessarily mad at you, more just the fact that I was cheated out of the chance to grow up with a father," Meredith said looking at Thatcher in the eyes.

"I know what you mean. I feel like I missed out on your whole childhood. Unfortunately, we can't get those years back, but we can start making up for them now," Thatcher said. "I want you to know that I consider you a daughter just as much as I consider Lexie a daughter. I know Susan feels the same way as well. We just both want you to feel like you are a part of this family," Thatcher said as he watched tears form in his daughter's eyes.

"Thank you, I appreciate that. It was just my mom and I for so long, but this is starting to feel like family for me. I also really like having a sister," Meredith said, and Thatcher had to hold back tears now at hearing Meredith talk about Lexie as her sister. Neither of them knew that Lexie had been about to come down the stairs and heard the end of the conversation. She felt a surge a pride as she heard Meredith call her a sister. She knew that she would do anything to protect Meredith and had considered her a sister as well. She turned back and headed to her room not wanting to interrupt the conversation going on downstairs.

"I'm glad that you feel that way," Thatcher said. "I also think it would be good if both of us started communicating our feelings better. I know it's not going to be easy but in the long run I think it will pay off," Thatcher said as Meredith nodded her head. They talked for a few more minutes and then went back to watching tv as Lexie came down and sat by Meredith's side. The three of them watched tv for 30 minutes before Susan came back from the store. Lexie and Meredith spent the rest of the night helping Susan bake some deserts for the bakery as Thatcher sat at the kitchen table doing some paperwork. He looked up and smiled at the sight of his wife and two daughters laughing in the kitchen. Knowing this is what he had envisioned when he first brought Meredith home from the hospital.


	12. Chapter 12

"Is this Susan Grey?" the voice said on the other end of the phone. Susan had been working at the bakery when her phone went off and she picked it up without looking at who was calling.

"Yes, who is this?" Susan asked.

"This is Pam, the secretary from school. Your daughter isn't feeling well, and I was calling to see if you could come pick her up," Pam said as Susan suddenly felt a surge of panic.

"Of course, tell Lexie I will be there in a little bit," Susan said without thinking.

"Oh, sorry I should have said I was talking about Meredith," Pam replied.

"Oh, of course," Susan said suddenly feeling bad that she assumed it was Lexie. "Let Meredith know I will be there soon," Susan said as she let her coworker know she had to leave and headed out the door to her car. She made it to the school 20 minutes later and walked in to the office. She was guided back to the nurse's office and saw Meredith laying down on the bed. The nurse met her outside and shut the door almost all the way, so she could talk to Susan for a minute.

"Hey, so what is wrong with her?" Susan asked the nurse.

"She came down to the office complaining of a headache and saying her stomach was hurting her. I checked, and she doesn't have a fever, but she does look a little pale to me. I know a little bit about what happed to her and anxiety can appear and mimic symptoms of feeling sick and I am not sure if that is what is happening, but I think it would be good for her to take today off," Heather said as Susan nodded her head. "Alright well I will leave you two, take as much time as you need in there," Heather continued as Susan thanked her and walked into the room. Meredith heard the door opening and turned to see Susan walking in. She suddenly felt guilty for making Susan leave work as it was still early in the morning. She just woke up feeling off and felt too overwhelmed to be at school today. Susan walked in smiling slightly as she sat down in the chair next to the bed.

"Hey honey, I heard you're not feeling too great," Susan said as Meredith looked over to her.

"Yeah I am sorry that you had to leave work to come and get me," Meredith said.

"Hey, don't worry about it. You and Lexie will always be more important to me than work. So, your head is hurting, and your stomach isn't feeling that great?" Susan asked.

"Yeah I guess," Meredith said as she looked away from Susan.

"Hey, you know you can talk to me," Susan said as she lightly grabbed Meredith's chin and made eye contact with her.

"I think I am just feeling really overwhelmed today. I don't know why but I was sitting in class and it just all felt like too much. I couldn't focus and started to get really anxious. I can just go back to class though," Meredith said as she looked at Susan.

"Of course not sweetie. Look you deserve a day off from school. I tell you what, it's still pretty early in the day so why don't we go home and you can nap for a little bit and then we can go out or stay in and just do whatever you want to do for the rest of the day," Susan said as she saw a small smile appear on Meredith's face.

"Okay as long as you are sure I'm not messing up your day," Meredith said as she sat up and grabbed her backpack.

"Not at all, plus this will be a lot more fun than working all day," Susan said as she winked at Meredith and the two walked out of the school and got into the car to head home. Meredith went upstairs and took a nap for an hour before she came back downstairs and sat next to Susan who was reading a book on the couch.

"So, do you know what you would like to do," Susan said as she put her book down and looked at the young girl next to her who looked a little nervous.

"Umm, well there is somewhere I was thinking of, but it is a little bit of a drive," Meredith said expecting Susan to say no to her.

"Sure, we have the whole day ahead of us. Where did you want to go?" Susan said as she noticed Meredith's expression change.

"There is this place that my mom took me to once. It is an old arcade and pinball museum. They have a bunch of old games that you can play there," Meredith said as she got a little excited thinking about going back there.

"Sounds like a lot of fun. Let me find the address for it and then we can go," Susan replied.

0000

They arrived at the museum close to an hour later. They spent most of the car ride listening to music and talking once in a while, but it was a comfortable silence. Susan pulled into the parking lot and noticed how Meredith's face lit up a little bit. The two got out and walked in to find it mostly empty minus a few people playing games inside. Susan instantly knew why Meredith wanted to come back to this place. They had tons of different arcade games and old pinball machines and the walls were covered with old and unique pictures of Seattle. Susan went up to the machine to get quarters and filled up two cups with them as she handed one to Meredith and kept the other one for herself. They two spent the next two hours playing all different types of arcade games and after that they stopped at a nearby restaurant to have some lunch. Susan had never seen Meredith as happy as she had been in that arcade and knew that today was exactly what Meredith had needed. They went over to a shopping center after they ate lunch and spent a few hours shopping for some new clothes for Meredith and some for Lexie as well. They were on their way home and had been sitting listening to music for a bit before Meredith finally spoke up.

"Thank you," Meredith said as she turned and look at Susan.

"For what honey?" Susan asked as she kept her eyes on the road.

"For today, I really needed this. Also thank you for everything you have done for me the past couple months. I know I am not your kid and you didn't have to accept me into your home, but I appreciate that you have been so nice and made me feel like a part of your family," Meredith said.

"Of course Meredith. I am glad that you enjoyed yourself today. I also want you to know that you are a part of this family and I think of you as my daughter," Susan said as Meredith wiped away a tear that fell from her eye.

"Thank you Susan. That means a lot to me," Meredith said as she cleared her throat.

"Your welcome hun. I'm glad that you took me to this arcade today. I think we should bring Lexie and Thatcher back here on a weekend," Susan said as she pulled into the driveway.

"That sounds like a great idea," Meredith said as the two got out of the car and headed inside to find Lexie and Thatcher finishing up making dinner. Susan had called Thatcher when Meredith had been taking a nap and let him know what was happening and he had let Lexie know when she got home from school. They were both worried about Meredith but were glad to see she was smiling when she walked into the kitchen with Susan.

"Hey you two, how was your day?" Thatcher said as her finished cutting up cucumbers for the salad.

"It was actually pretty fun. We went to this arcade that my mom had taken me to a while ago and then did some shopping," Meredith said and suddenly felt guilty hoping Lexie didn't mind that she had been stuck in school all day.

"That sounds like fun. I'm glad you had a good time," Lexie said as she sounded happy that Meredith had enjoyed her day.

"I did. Sorry you had to be in school all day," Meredith said as Lexie saw that she looked almost guilty.

"It's fine. School wasn't bad today, but we will have to go back to the arcade on a day when we don't have school," Lexie said smiling to make sure Meredith knew she wasn't mad that she was stuck in school.

"I was just saying that to Meredith on the way home actually. Thanks for getting dinner ready, it looks great," Susan said as she walked over to Thatcher and kissed him on the lips as she washed her hands to help finish up dinner. Meredith helped Lexie set the table and soon the four of them sat down to eat dinner. They finished up dinner and sat down on the couch to watch a movie.

As Meredith went to bed that night, she realized that this was one of the first times in a while that she just enjoyed herself for a day and felt like a normal teenager.


	13. Chapter 13

Christina Yang didn't share information about herself with almost anyone. She was a closed book and the only person she really told stuff to was Lexie Grey. They had been friends for a long time and she felt comfortable enough to share details of her life. Lexie was one of the only people that knew Christina's dad had died when she was younger. Christina was about to add another person to that list. She had only known Meredith Grey for a few months and didn't know much about her but knew her mom was killed in a car accident. She also knew that Meredith was in the car when it happened. She made that decision a few weeks ago after talking to Lexie.

2 WEEKS AGO

Lexie had spent the afternoon with Christina and the two had gone back to Christina's house to hang out.

"Hey so how are things going with Meredith?" Christina asked.

"Good, I guess. I mean I don't know. Some days she seems fine but then other days she is just so quiet and distant. I never know what to say to her on those days. I don't want to say something that might upset her more," Lexie said as she looked towards Christina. She knew Christina had lost her dad and didn't really know the details but figured if anyone understood what Meredith was going through it would be Christina.

"Yeah I get that. Maybe I can see if I can talk to her," Christina said as Lexie's face lit up.

Yeah, I mean I think that could be really helpful," Lexie said as the two girls went back to watching tv.

PRESENT DAY

Christina didn't know why she agreed to talk to Meredith, but she felt a pull to the girl. She remembered what it was like right after her dad died and how she never felt like anyone understood what she was going through. In her case she had her mom to go through it with and she knew that Meredith was thrust into a home with strangers. However, she figured she would give Meredith the opportunity to talk if she wanted it. She knew better than to push the girl but wanted her to know that she could always talk to her if she needed to.

000

The next weekend Christina was over at Lexie's house hanging out with her and Meredith. Lexie had to go downstairs for a few minutes to help her mom out, leaving Christina and Meredith alone in the girl's bedroom. Christina figured this was a good a time as any to talk to her. They were both working on homework, so Christina waited a moment before she cleared her throat.

"So, my dad died in a car accident when I was 9," Christina started as Meredith turned towards her in shock. "I was in the car when it happened and even though I don't remember everything, I remember enough. I am not telling you this so you will feel bad for me or anything. I just wanted you to know that I am here if you ever need to talk to anyone who might know what it is like," Christina finished as Meredith nodded her head.

"Thank you. I'm sure it wasn't easy for you to tell me that, but I appreciate the fact that you did," Meredith said as both girls went back to doing their homework. Meredith wasn't sure about Christina when she first met her, but she began to see what Lexie met when she said Christina cared but just didn't always show it. She didn't want to talk to Christina about her mom right now but was glad that there was someone she could talk to who understood what she was going through.

000

Later that evening Meredith and Lexie were laying in their beds both awake. Lexie was having trouble falling asleep and knew Meredith was as well since she kept turning over. After about 10 minutes of this Lexie decided to say something.

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" Lexie asked as she looked across the room to Meredith who turned towards her.

"I don't know. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a doctor but now that I am older, I think maybe I just wanted to be one because my mom is… or was one. What about you?" Meredith asked.

"I really don't know. I think being a doctor would be incredible though. I mean you literally get to save lives. How many people get to say that about their job," Lexie said with excitement in her voice.

"Yeah I guess it would be. I mean I don't know. The plan was always for me to go to med school and become a doctor. I was scared of disappointing my mom, so I went along with the plan. I don't know, I mean it probably sounds stupid but even though my mom is gone I still worry about letting her down," Meredith said as she sighed.

Lexie wasn't quite sure how to respond. Her parents never put any pressure on her to follow a certain path and she didn't know what that would be like. "Well even if your mom wasn't a doctor, do you think you would have any interest in being one?" Lexie asked.

"Maybe, I mean it's hard to say since my mom being a doctor is all I have ever known," Meredith said as she looked up to the ceiling.

"Yeah that's true. Well I think you should do what makes you happy," Lexie said as Meredith smiled over at her. She started getting up out of bed as Lexie looked at her with a confused expression.

"I'm just going to grab a glass of water from downstairs," Meredith said as she got up and quietly left the room. Lexie nodded here head and laid down falling asleep a minute later. Meredith slowly walked down the stairs and saw a light on in the corner of the living room. She saw Susan curled up on the couch reading a book. Susan turned and when she saw Meredith walking down the stairs, she put the book down.

"Can't sleep either?" Susan asked as she smiled slightly at Meredith.

"Not really. I got thirsty, so I came down for a glass of water. Can I talk to you about something though?" Meredith asked as she sat down on the couch next to Susan.

"Of course honey, what's on your mind?" Susan replied to the young girl.

"Lexie asked me tonight about what I wanted to be when I grew up and it just got me thinking about my future. I hadn't actually thought about it in a long time. I guess I just get scared thinking about what is going to happen down the road. I start to think about all the stuff my mom is going to miss in my life. Graduating high school, going to college, getting married, stuff like that. I mean you never realize someone is really gone until you think about everything they are going to miss," Meredith said as she had moved closer to Susan without even realizing she had.

"I know it's scary to think about a future without you mom in it. There is a lot that she is going to miss but just know that we will all be there for you," Susan said as Meredith leaned into her side.

"Thank you, it means a lot. Hey how did you know that you wanted to be a baker?" Meredith asked changing the subject.

"I guess I didn't really know. I just always loved baking and my mom was a great baker. In a lot of ways, I think that baking made me feel closer to her. It made me feel like we had a stronger connection," Susan replied as Meredith nodded her head. "When my mom died, I didn't bake for almost a year. I just couldn't bring myself to do it anymore. I thought it would remind me of her and that just seemed like torture. But then one day I just woke up and decided I wanted to bake again. At first it made me miss my mom but then suddenly I felt like she was in the kitchen with me and it almost brought me a sense of comfort. To this day I still feel that way anytime I am in the kitchen," Susan said as she smiled at Meredith who was starting to look really tired. Do you want to try and go to bed again?" Susan asked as Meredith nodded her head and got up. Both of them headed upstairs and Susan said goodnight to Meredith before they both headed into their own bedrooms. Meredith laid back down in her bed and closed her eyes. Right before she fell back asleep she wondered if she would feel closer to her mom if she became a doctor.


	14. Chapter 14

Meredith woke up in a cold sweat breathing heavily. The nightmare she woke up from was too vivid, too real for her to go through alone. She looked over seeing Lexie's empty bed and remembered her sister was gone for the night. She went over to Izzie's house for a sleepover. The girls had invited Meredith over, but she had politely declined. She had a sinking feeling all day that something wasn't right. Fearing she would have a nightmare that night and not wanting an audience she decided to stay at home. Thatcher had to go out of town for the weekend for a work conference leaving just Susan and Meredith alone for the night. Meredith thought about just trying to go back to bed, but she was having a hard time controlling her breathing. She didn't want to wake Susan up, but she knew she didn't have much of a choice and plus Susan had told her she could always come to her if needed. Meredith slowly got out of bed as her body was still shaking from the nightmare. She navigated her way down the hall and into the bedroom. It was pitch black and she finally found her way to the side of the bed where Susan normally slept. She gently shook Susan's shoulder and waited for a moment as Susan turned over. She sat up and turned on the light as she noticed something was wrong with the girl in front of her.

"Honey what's wrong? Are you sick?" Susan asked as she gently grabbed Meredith who was shaking and helped her sit down on the bed.

"No, just had a nightmare," Meredith said as Susan's heart broke listening to the girl struggling to breath.

"Okay, you're okay. Let's just work on your breathing for a few minutes. I am going to take a few deep breaths and I want you to do the same," Susan said as she watched Meredith nod her head and the two spent the next couple minutes just taking deep breaths. Susan noticed the girl wasn't shaking as much so she took a break and pulled Meredith closer to her on the bed and helped her lay under the sheets.

"I can go back to my room, sorry I didn't mean to wake you," Meredith said as Susan just shushed her.

"Hey, no need to apologize. I want you to feel safe and comfortable coming to me when something like this happens. No matter what time of night you can always come," Susan said as she pushed some of the hair out of Meredith's eyes.

"I just want them to stop," Meredith said as she had a few tears escape from her eyes.

"I know you do honey and I wish I could take them away from you but remember when you first came here and had them every night," Susan said as Meredith nodded her head. "They have gotten a lot less frequent since then haven't they. I know that it seems like a setback every time you have one, but you have come a long way since then. Is that part of the reason why you didn't want to go over to Izzie's house tonight?" Susan asked as Meredith looked up at her.

"Yeah I just didn't want Izzie and Christina to see me like this," Meredith said as Susan nodded her head encouraging the girl to continue. "It's hard being the new girl in a different school and I don't need another reason to be even more isolated," Meredith said looking back down.

"I know it's scary being in a new place and wanting to fit in but those two wouldn't judge you Meredith," Susan said as she ran her finger through Meredith's hair trying to help the girl calm down.

"I know I just wanted them to have a good time and not worry about me. I know Lexie does enough already and I just wanted her to have fun tonight," Meredith replied.

"Honey, Lexie is going to worry about you regardless because that is who she is. She loves spending time with you so don't worry about being a burden to her. You have had a really hard year, but you are so strong," Susan said as she kissed the top of Meredith's head. Over the past month the two of them had gotten closer. Meredith started coming to her more and more to talk and for comfort and she was glad their relationship was starting to feel more like mother and daughter and less like two strangers.

"I don't always feel so strong. Some days I feel like I am on the verge of falling apart and that scares me," Meredith whispered.

"Meredith you have every right to feel that way. Anyone who has been through as much as you have would feel that way. I want you to come to me, Thatcher, or Lexie if things get too hard though," Susan said as Meredith nodded her head. "Alright you are not alone in this and you never will be," Susan said as Meredith's eyes began to close from sheer exhaustion. Susan waited till Meredith was sound asleep before she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep as well.

Susan woke up the next morning and noticed Meredith was no longer in bed. She went to the girls' room and found Meredith drawing at her desk. She knew the girl liked to do this when she was feeling particularly anxious, so Susan let her be and went downstairs to make some breakfast knowing Lexie would be home soon. Fifteen minutes later the front door opened, and Lexie came in with a smile on her face.

"Hey honey how was the sleepover?" Susan asked as she pulled some eggs out of the fridge.

"It was a lot of fun. It has been a while since the three of us have had one. I just wish Meredith would have come," Lexie said as she looked over to her mom.

"She is still adjusting to everything and I think she was a little worried about having a nightmare around Izzie and Christina," Susan suggested as Lexie nodded.

"Yeah I figured that is why she said no. It's just not fair though. She deserves to have a fun night too," Lexie said as her mom came over and rubbed her shoulders.

"I know it isn't, but she will eventually get to a place where she feels more comfortable around your friends like she did with us," Susan said as Lexie nodded her head. "I am almost done with breakfast, can you go upstairs and grab your sister to come eat," Susan said as Lexie smiled and walked upstairs.

Lexie slowly walked into the room and noticed Meredith looking off into the distance while sitting at her desk. "Hey," she said quietly not wanting to startle Meredith.

"Hey, how your night?" Meredith said turning around in her chair.

"It was good, would have been more fun with you there though," Lexie said with a smile.

"Yeah maybe next time. I am glad you had a good night," Meredith said.

"Thanks, hey breakfast is ready," Lexie said as Meredith nodded her head.

"Sure, I will be down in a minute," Meredith replied as Lexie turned back and headed downstairs to help her mom finish cooking. Meredith came down and minute later and the three sat down and started to eat. Meredith barely touched her food and kept pretty quiet. She was still feeling off since last night but didn't want anyone to worry so she tried to eat as much food as she could. After they finished eating Lexie went upstairs to take a shower and Meredith helped Susan clean up the dishes.

"Thanks for helping," Susan said as she turned off the faucet and looked over at Meredith. "Hey, are you doing okay?" Susan asked as Meredith shook her head.

"I don't think so, I can't explain it, but I just haven't felt for a few days. I think I am maybe just tired," Meredith said as she looked down at the ground.

"I know I saw how little food you ate just now. I know you didn't get a good night sleep, but I think something else is going on as well," Susan said as Meredith looked towards her. "Do you want me to see if Dr. Brunson has an opening today to go see her? I know it's not your normal day you usually go but it might be good to talk to her," Susan said as Meredith thought for a minute.

"Yeah I guess so," Meredith replied as Susan nodded her head. Okay why don't you go lay down on the couch and I will call her office right now," Susan responded as Meredith nodded and headed off towards the other room. Susan walked over to the office and found Dr. Brunson's number. She dialed the number and waited.

"Dr. Brunson's office this is Katie speaking, how can I assist you?" the woman on the other line of the phone said.

"Hi Katie, this is Susan, I am calling in regard to Meredith Grey who is a patient. I just was looking to see if Dr. Brunson had any availability today to talk to Meredith. She has just been having a really hard time the last few days," Susan said as she looked over to the couch and saw that Meredith's eyes were closed.

"Alright Susan, Dr. Brunson just got out of a session so let me put you on hold and I will go speak to her," Katie said as Susan thanked her and waited on the line. She had only been waiting a minute or two when the line clicked back on. "Susan, there is an opening for 2pm if that works," Katie said.

"Alright that is perfect, thank you so much Katie I will see you then," Susan responded as she said goodbye and hung up the phone. Looking at the clock she noticed it was 11am and made her way over to the couch. She got close and squatted down as Meredith slowly opened her eyes.

"Hey honey, I talked to the office and she has an opening at 2pm. Why don't you sleep for a little bit and then I will take you okay," Susan said as Meredith just nodded her head and closed her eyes again. Susan was walking back into the kitchen when the phone went off again. "Hello," Susan said.

"Hey Hun, just wanted to let you know that I am boarding my plane soon to come home," Thatcher said.

"Oh good, hey I am not sure if I will be here when you get back. I am going to take Meredith to see her therapist. She has been feeling off all weekend and had a nightmare last night which turned into a panic attack, so I thought it would be a good idea for her to go to an extra session this week," Susan said as she heard Thatcher sigh.

"Alright that is a good idea, I am glad there was an availability for her to go in," Thatcher said.

"Yeah I am too, I am worried about her," Susan said.

"I know so am I. We will see how her session goes and take it one step at a time. Hey, look my plane is boarding but let me know when you are heading back from her appointment okay," Thatcher said as he said goodbye and hung up his phone and got on his plane. Susan set the phone down and looked over at Meredith one more time before going upstairs.


	15. Chapter 15

*Warning: Mentions of self-harm this chapter*

Meredith and Susan sat in Dr. Brunson's office. They had been there for a few minutes and Susan had kept quiet knowing Meredith wasn't very talkative. A few minutes later the door opened up and Dr. Brunson appeared smiling.

"Hey Meredith, ready to come back?" Dr. Brunson asked as Meredith nodded her head and stood up. The two walked back into her office as Dr. Brunson closed the door. She waited for Meredith to sit down on the couch before speaking up.

"Hey so Susan said you haven't been feeling great," Dr. Brunson said as Meredith nodded her head still not saying anything. "When did this all start?" she asked.

"Umm I guess yesterday in the morning. I woke up and my chest felt really tight. I just felt a sense of dread like something bad was going to happen. It just kept getting worse all day and then last night I had a nightmare," Meredith said as she looked at a spot on the wall. "I woke up from that it and couldn't breathe or stop shaking. I eventually fell back asleep but today has been the same," Meredith continued.

"Sounds like a panic attack. What did you do when you woke up last night?" Dr. Brunson asked.

"I sat in bed and was just going to try and go back to sleep but I ended up going to Susan and she helped me calm down," Meredith said as she looked over at Dr. Brunson.

"That's good, it is always a good idea to find someone when you are feeling that way to help you ground yourself again. Do you remember your dream?" Dr. Brunson asked who looked over and saw Meredith shaking her head. She didn't totally believe that the girl didn't remember her dream but didn't want to push her right now. "What are you feeling right now?" Dr. Brunson asked trying to go a different route.

"Honestly nothing. I just feel numb. I don't know," Meredith said sounding defeated.

"It's okay to feel nothing. Sometimes our brain is working too hard and it is all too much, so it blocks everything out," Dr. Brunson said.

"I just want to feel better. I want to feel something," Meredith said feeling defeated.

"Meredith, I need to ask you a question and I want you to be completely honest with me. Okay there is no judgement here and you won't get in trouble," Dr. Brunson said as she waited for Meredith to look over at her before she continued. "Have you been thinking about hurting yourself at all the past couple days?" she continued as she watched Meredith hesitate for a minute before shaking her head no. "Let me rephrase that, have you ever thought about hurting yourself?" she asked again, and this time Meredith shook her head yes. "Okay thank you for telling me the truth. I know it isn't easy to do but it is good for me to know these things, so I can try and help you. Can you make me a promise that if you think about hurting yourself again you will tell Susan or someone else in your house or tell me," Dr. Brunson said.

"Yeah I can do that. I haven't had those thoughts for a while," Meredith responded as Dr. Brunson nodded her head.

"Okay thank you," Dr. Brunson said as she saw Meredith look down.

"You have to tell her, don't you?" Meredith said quietly.

"Meredith you know the deal, everything stays between us unless it is a concern of your safety. I am going to let Susan know but it's for your own good," Dr. Brunson said.

"She is going to be disappointed," Meredith said softly again.

"No, she won't. She will be worried, but she won't be disappointed. Meredith it's okay to feel the way you are feeling. There is nothing wrong with you okay so let's figure out some ways to try and help you out," Dr. Brunson said as Meredith nodded and the two spent the next hour talking.

Susan looked up when she heard the office door open and saw Meredith come out with Dr. Brunson. "Meredith I will see you again on Wednesday," she said as Meredith nodded her head.  
"Hey Susan, can I just talk to you for a minute?" Dr. Brunson said as Susan looked back at Meredith who was sitting down in the chair. "Sure," Susan said as Dr. Brunson turned back and headed to her office with Susan following.

"Is everything okay?" Susan asked feeling a pit in the bottom of her stomach.

"Remember on the first day I met with you and Thatcher and I told you everything would stay between myself and Meredith unless she expressed wanting to hurt herself," Dr. Brunson said as Susan's face fell to sadness. "I want you to know she isn't actively feeling that way, but she has in the past since she moved in with you. Look I know it is scary, but we talked about if she felt that way again that she talks to one of you guys at home or call and talk to me," Dr. Brunson said.

"Okay, so what do I do?" Susan asked feeling lost.

"You keep an eye on her and have your family keep an eye on her. If you notice anything off at all call my cell phone and we can talk and go from there. Meredith has been through a lot, but she is also a really tough girl. She is going through a rough patch right now. We have our next meeting in a few days and if she isn't feeling better by Wednesday then we can talk about what would be next such as prescribing some medication or further steps. I think it might be a good idea to keep her out of school for the next few days. I doubt she could focus there anyway with where her head it at right now," Dr. Brunson said.

"Okay thank you, I will see you on Wednesday then," Susan said as she stood up.

"Yes, and if anything comes up before then call my cell," she said handing Susan a card with her number on it.

"Thank you," Susan said as she made her way out the door and into the waiting area where Meredith was sitting. "Hey ready to go home?" Susan asked as Meredith nodded her head and they made their way out to the car. Susan turned on the car and looked over at Meredith.

"I'm sorry, I should have told you," Meredith said feeling guilty.

"You have no reason to apologize. I just don't want you to feel like you have to hide things from us," Susan responded.

"It's just really hard to talk about sometimes," Meredith said as she looked back at Susan.

"I know honey," Susan said as she ran a finger through Meredith's hair. "The only way we are going to get through this though is if we are all honest with each other," Susan continued as Meredith nodded her head.

"I will tell you next time," Meredith responded.

"Thank you. I love you honey," Susan said as Meredith looked up at her.

"I love you too," Meredith replied as Susan looked at her for another moment and smiled slightly before pulling the car out of the parking lot and heading home.

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Susan walked into the house followed behind by Meredith. She noticed that Lexie and Thatcher were setting the table for dinner. Meredith quickly turned towards Susan.

"Hey, I am not feeling that hungry right now, can I just go lay upstairs for a little bit," she said with pleading eyes as Susan nodded her head.

"Sure of course, I will come check on you in a little bit," Susan said suddenly feeling nervous to leave the girl alone. She remembered what Dr. Brunson had told her though and let Meredith make her way upstairs. She needed to have a conversation with her daughter and husband any ways and this was a good chance to do that with Meredith not around.

"Hey, glad you are home," Susan said as she made her way over to Thatcher and kissed him quickly before setting her purse down on the counter.

"I am too, is Meredith eating?" Thatcher asked noticing the girl hadn't followed Susan into the kitchen.

"She is going to lay down for a little bit, she has had a hard couple day and needs some rest. Plus, the three of us need to have a conversation," Susan said looking over to her daughter.

"It's about Meredith isn't it?" Lexie asked as she watched her mother nod her head.

"Yes honey, let's start eating and then we can talk," Susan said as the three of them sat down. Once they had all gotten food on their plates, Susan cleared her throat. "So, you know Meredith has been having a hard time and this weekend has been the worst for her that it has been in a while. She had a pretty bad nightmare and panic attack last night and she has just been really quiet and drained. I talked with Dr. Brunson after Meredith had talked with her today and she expressed some concerns with me," Susan said as she noticed her husband's face pale. Thatcher had been in the room that first day and knew where this conversation was likely going. "Meredith told Dr. Brunson that in the past she has thought about hurting herself. She isn't currently feeling that way but that doesn't mean that she won't again. So that means that we all need to keep an eye on her," Susan said as she watched both her daughter and husbands faces drop.

"Why didn't she tell any of us?" Lexie asked.

"Honey it isn't an easy thing to talk about. Meredith isn't one hundred percent comfortable with all of us and even if she was, she still might not have told us. The important thing is that she told someone and now we are all aware," Susan said as she looked at her daughter knowing this news would upset her.

"What did Dr. Brunson say we should do?" Thatcher said trying to process all the information he had just learned.

"Well we talked, and she said just to be on the lookout for any odd behavior from Meredith. I have her cell number so if anything comes up, we can call her. She believes that Meredith will tell one of us if she starts to feel like doing something so for now, we have to trust that she will. As for where she is at right now mentally, we are just going to see how she does the next couple days. Meredith has another meeting with Dr. Brunson on Wednesday and if she isn't feeling any better, then we go from there and see what might need to be done further," Susan said as Thatcher and Lexie both nodded their heads.

"Of course, we will do whatever is best for Meredith," Thatcher said.

"Lexie, Meredith is more likely to tell you things than me or your father, so it is really important that if she says anything that alarms you that you tell us," Susan said looking at her daughter.

"Yeah of course," Lexie said.

"Dr. Brunson said Meredith should take a few days off school, so I am going to call and have them get all of her homework together, so you can pick it up for her," Susan continued as Lexie nodded her head.

They had finished up a few minutes later and Susan got to work on washing the dishes and Thatcher came over to help her. Lexie had gone upstairs to see if Meredith wanted to eat leaving the two parents alone downstairs. Thatcher knew Susan was on the verge of breaking at any moment and was trying to be strong for both girls. He reached over and pulled her into his arms as she immediately started to cry. A few minutes later she pulled back and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I'm scared," Susan said as Thatcher nodded his head in understanding.

"I know I am too. Remember the day we brought Lexie home from the hospital and had no idea what we were doing," Thatcher said as Susan nodded her head. "We made a promise to take it one day at a time and that is what we will do now. We are in uncharted territory with this whole situation and we might make mistakes and it won't be perfect but as long as our two girls are safe then we will be okay," Thatcher said as Susan looked up at him.

"We will be okay," Susan repeated back to him as he nodded his head and hugged his wife again.

Upstairs Lexie quietly made her way into the bed room and set the plate of food down on the counter. She went over to Meredith's bed and noticed the girl wasn't sleeping.

"Hey, you want to try and eat something. We got pizza your favorite," Lexie said as Meredith sat up and nodded.

"Thank you," Meredith said as she grabbed a slice and took a bite as Lexie walked over to her side of the room and sat down on her bed. She pulled out a notebook to start some homework.

"Of course," Lexie said. She tried to focus on her schoolwork and not focus too much on Meredith but couldn't help but notice the girl only ate half a slice of pizza before she set it down and laid back down shutting her eyes. The girl tossed and turned for a few minutes before opening her eyes again and looked over at Lexie. Lexie set her book down and took a deep breath.

"Promise you will tell me if you start thinking about hurting yourself," Lexie said.

"I promise… Lexie do you think some people are just so damaged that they can't be fixed," Meredith said as Lexie sat for a moment trying to figure out how she wanted to respond.

"I think everyone can be. Some people might take longer than others to get back to a place where they are good. I know right now it is hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but I will never give up on you, so don't give up on yourself please," Lexie said as she came over to Meredith's bed and sat next to her.

"I don't know where I would be if I didn't have you. Thank you," Meredith said as Lexie just pulled Meredith into her side and the two girls just enjoyed the silence for a little while. Meredith eventually fell asleep and Lexie followed not too long after. Susan came up to check on the girls and saw them together on the bed cuddled up and sleeping. She knew that they had made the right choice in bringing Meredith to their home.


	16. Chapter 16

On Tuesday morning Meredith woke up and turned over in her bed. She noticed Lexie was gone and figured she must have already left for school. She looked at the clock and saw it was close to 10am. Knowing she didn't have to go to school today she turned back over and closed her eyes again.

Downstairs Susan and Thatcher were sitting at the kitchen table. Thatcher had decided to work from home today, so Susan could go into work for a few hours. Given everything going on with Meredith it was decided that someone would be home with her at all times.

"Alright I am just going to go in for part of the day. I checked on Meredith a half hour ago and she was still asleep. I would just go check on her in a little bit but call me if you need me," Susan said as she stood up and kissed Thatcher on the lips before making her way towards the door.

"Alright I will, enjoy work," Thatcher said back to his wife before turning to open up his computer and started to go through some work emails. He went upstairs an hour later and saw that Meredith was still sleeping. He sighed and made his way back downstairs to start looking over the files for a new project his company was starting next week.

Meredith woke up and saw that is was now noon. She thought about just going back to bed but decided to get up and take a shower hoping it would make her feel a little better. She got out a few minutes later and changed into some different clothes before making her way downstairs. She got to the end of the stairs and saw Thatcher sitting at the table working on his computer. He looked up when he saw her coming around the corner and smiled.

"Hey, did you sleep well?" Thatcher asked as Meredith nodded her head. "Good, do you want something to eat?" Thatcher asked as Meredith thought for a moment before replying.

"I'm not that hungry but maybe some toast," Meredith said as Thatcher stood to get up. Meredith sat down at the table and looked outside. Thatcher brought a plate over a minute later with the toast on it. It had butter and cinnamon on top which was Meredith's favorite.

"Thank you," Meredith said as Thatcher sat back down and started typing again.

"You're welcome. Susan went into the bakery for a few hours, but she should be back around the time Lexie gets home from school. How are you feeling?" Thatcher asked as he looked up from his computer and got a good look at Meredith. She looked warn down and exhausted.

"I don't know. I guess the same as the past few days. I just am so tired," Meredith said as she looked up.

"I know you are, but you have your appointment with Dr. Brunson, tomorrow right?" Thatcher asked as Meredith nodded her head. "Alright that's good, just make sure you let her know and we will see what she recommends for you," Thatcher said.

"I just don't want to have to take medication," Meredith said as she fidgeted with her fingers.

"Why is that?" Thatcher asked as he looked towards Meredith.

"I already feel different enough and I don't want to have to rely on something to make me feel better," Meredith said.

"Meredith there is nothing wrong with needing help. You know some people are more prone to depression and anxiety and sometimes it can be from a chemical imbalance which medication can help adjust that. There is nothing to be ashamed of," Thatcher said as Meredith looked up at him.

"I know. I don't know I just feel bad. You and Susan keep having to stay home from work and drive me to therapy and all this stuff," Meredith responded.

"Honey look at me please," Thatcher said as Meredith sighed and looked up at him. "Please don't worry about that. Meredith we are a family, and this is what family does for each other. Alright we love you and we want you to feel better," Thatcher said as Meredith nodded.

"Thank you, I think I might just go lay down on the couch for a little bit and watch some tv," Meredith said as Thatcher nodded his head.

"Of course, let me know if you need anything," Thatcher said as Meredith stood up and pushed in her chair. She took her dish over to the sink and then made her way into the other room turning on the tv and laying down. She fell asleep a few minutes later.

00000

Lexie got home around 3pm and saw her mom pulling her car up the driveway. Susan got out and waved.

"Hey how was school?" Susan asked as Lexie walked up the driveway.

"It was good, kind of boring," Lexie said as Susan laughed. The two made their way inside and into the kitchen where Thatcher was sitting going over some paperwork. He looked up and smiled.

"Hey how were your days?" Thatcher responded as he set the papers down on the table.

"Good," Lexie replied.

"Mine was good as well," Susan said.

"Is Meredith upstairs?" Lexie asked as she grabbed an apple from the fridge.

"No, she is in the other room. When I checked 30 minutes ago, she was asleep. She has been asleep most of the day," Thatcher said as he watched Lexie's face fall. He knew this had been really hard on his daughter.

"Did she eat anything," Susan asked.

"Yeah I made her some toast around noon and she drank some Gatorade," Thatcher said as Susan nodded her head. Lexie took the apple and made her way upstairs. Susan turned and sighed before going over to sit down next to Thatcher.

"How is she?" Susan asked.

"She looked exhausted. She slept till noon and then came downstairs and was really only up for maybe an hour before she fell asleep again. She told me she feels the same she has been feeling for the past couple days," Thatcher said.

"I was worried that would be the case," Susan said. "She has her appointment tomorrow morning, so I will see what Dr. Brunson thinks," Susan continued as she looked up at Thatcher.

"Meredith told me she didn't want to take medicine. She said she doesn't fit in as it is and didn't want to have to rely on something," Thatcher responded.

"Alright I will let Dr. Brunson know that and see if we can all talk," Susan said as she looked towards the stairs. "I am going to go check on Lexie. I know she is worried," Susan said as Thatcher put his arm on his wife's shoulder.

"Do you mind if I go and talk to her?" he asked as Susan shook her head.

"No of course you can," Susan said as Thatcher stood up and headed towards the stairs. He got outside Lexie's door and knocked before entering the room. Lexie looked up from where she was sitting on her bed at her dad.

"Hey, can I come in," Thatcher said as Lexie nodded her head. He grabbed a chair from the desk and sat down looking over at his daughter. "I don't think I need to ask if you are okay," Thatcher said as Lexie looked at him.

"Look I know you and Mom don't tell me everything but is Meredith going to be okay? I mean how bad is it?" Lexie said as Thatcher sighed.

"She is struggling honey. You obviously know that, but you also know how strong she is," Thatcher said.

"I know she is, but I just don't know how much more she can take," Lexie replied.

"I know, and I get scared sometimes with the same thoughts, but we are all going to help her out to make sure she is okay. She is going to see her therapist again tomorrow and depending on how that goes we will go from there. How are you doing with everything? I realized I never really checked in with you much. I know there have been a lot of changes this year with Meredith coming to live here," Thatcher said.

"I love having a sister and to be honest it wasn't that big of an adjustment. I don't know it just felt like Meredith was always meant to live here you know," Lexie said as Thatcher nodded his head.

"Yeah I know what you mean. Look I know your mom and I have been focusing a lot on Meredith right now, but you know we are both here for you and if things ever get too hard or you just need to talk let us know," Thatcher said.

"I know, I will," Lexie said feeling a little better than she had a few minutes ago.

"Alright I am going to order takeout tonight. Is there anything you want?" Thatcher asked as a smile appeared on Lexie's face.

"What about Chinese?" She suggested.

"That sounds perfect," Thatcher said as he kissed Lexie's head and made his way back downstairs.

00000

The family ate a few hours later and went off after dinner to do their own things. Lexie went and worked on homework out on the deck. Susan was in the kitchen trying out some new recipes for the bakery and Thatcher had gone upstairs to take a shower and fold some laundry. Meredith had been sitting on the couch drawing. She was feeling really uneasy but didn't want to bother anyone, so she tried to push through it. She could barely focus on what she was drawing at this point and just stared off into space. She decided she might as well just go upstairs and try to sleep. She set her drawing stuff down and went into the kitchen as Susan looked up and smiled at her.

"Hey, you alright?" Susan asked as Meredith nodded her head.

"Yeah I am tired, I think I am going to try and go to bed," Meredith replied as she looked over at Susan.

"Alright, your therapy appointment is at 10 tomorrow morning. We will probably leave here around 9:30 so if you aren't awake by 9, I will get you up," Susan said.

"Alright sounds good, thank you," Meredith said as she surprised herself and Susan by going over and giving her a hug. Susan kissed the top of her head and pulled back as Meredith turned and headed up the stairs. Meredith never really initiated physical contact with the family so Susan was surprised that she just had.

Meredith made her way down the hall and got into her room. She changed into pajamas and got into bed. She didn't think she would actually be able to fall asleep, but she was too exhausted to do anything else. She closed her eyes and tried some of the exercises Dr. Brunson had taught her to calm her mind. When that didn't work, she got up and went into the bathroom. She thought a hot shower might help her, so she undressed and got into the shower and let the water run over her for a while before getting out. She put her pajamas back on and made her way back into her room seeing that Lexie had come upstairs. She was sitting on her bed with her computer and a stack of DVD's. She motioned for Meredith to come over and scooted to one side so Meredith could sit next to her. Meredith grabber her pillow and blanket off her bed and went over to sit down next to Lexie.

"Alright you are going to pick the movie tonight," Lexie said as Meredith nodded her head. After the movie was picked the two girls leaned back into their pillows and shut the lights off in the room as they settled in. Meredith didn't know how Lexie knew she wouldn't be able to sleep tonight but she was very happy for the distraction. She felt her eyes grow heavier during the movie and was passed out by the time the credits rolled. Lexie looked over and carefully set her laptop down on the ground before pulling Meredith's blanket up around her before she laid down herself next to the girl and stayed up a while just in case Meredith woke up. She made it about an hour before she drifted off to sleep as well. She woke up hours later and realized it was morning. She smiled knowing that Meredith had slept throughout the night and quietly got out of bed to get ready for school.


End file.
